>> this is "bbc world news." funding for this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank. >> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now, "bbc world news."

>> president obama confirms that the leader of al qaeda, osama bin laden, is dead. >> tonight, i can report to the american people and to the world the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden, the leader of al qaeda. >> u.s. special forces track america's most wanted down to a compound in pakistan. media outlets in america report his body has been buried at sea. >> u.s.a.! u.s.a.! >> in washington, hundreds of americans have gone on to the streets in celebration. in yemen, an al qaeda spokesman said bin laden's death is a catastrophe. welcome to "bbc world news." i'm geeta guru-murthy. >> also in this program, we'll bring you reaction to the news of bin laden's death from within the region and around the world. in afghanistan, president hamid

karzai urge says the taliban to learn a lesson and stop fighting. >> and almost a decade on from the september 11 attacks on 2011 on the world trade center and the pentagon, we will look at the impact of bin laden's death on al qaeda's capabilities. >> america's most wanted man is dead. osama bin laden, the mastermind behind the september 11 attacks has been killed by u.s. special forces operating in pakistan. president obama made the announcement in a dramatic late-night address to the nation. he said an intelligence tipoff last august eventually led forces to a high-walled compound close to the pakistani capital, islamabad. osama bin laden was reportedly shot in the head in the ensuing fire fight, and his body has

now been buried at sea. from washington, d.c., andrew north has more. >> tonight, i can report to the american people and to the world that the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden, the leader of al qaeda. >> it's 10 years since osama bin laden attacked the united states on its own shores. 3,000 people were killed on 9/11, the worst attack on american soil since pearl harbor. when bin laden admitted he'd ordered them, he became the world's most wanted man. >> there's an old poster out west as i recall that said, "wanted: dead or alive." ' he was tracked down to the mountains of tora bora after u.s. forces had invaded afghanistan. b-52's bombed the caves he used to hide out. but he escaped over the border into pakistan's tribal areas,

and the trail went cold. this weekend, u.s. special forces found him, not in the tribal areas, but in the pakistani town of abbottabad. he was sheltering in this compound, filmed here after the u.s. raid. just down the road from a pakistani military base. >> it's an odd feeling in the ballpark right now, to be perfectly with you. some of the crowd chanting "u.s.a." u.s.a.." >> the news started spreading across the u.s. even before president obama spoke. crowds flocked to times square in new york. soldiers joining the celebrations. >> ♪ god bless america ♪ >> outside the white house, there were chants of four more years for obama. >> the crowds here outside the white house are growing all the time. there's a mood of huge euphoria and relief at what they just heard from president obama. it also brings back memories of being in the u.s. immediately after september 11 when it was

fear that brought people together. and even now, despite the celebration, there's fear that this is not the end of the story. >> training camps in afghanistan may be destroyed, but al qaeda has mushroomed elsewhere. its number two, ayman al-zawahiri, is still at large. right now, america is celebrating news many thought would never come, that osama bin laden is dead. andrew north, bbc news, washington. >> let's go now to washington, where our correspondent, adam brooks, is there. adam, you've been briefed on the details of this operation. >> senior administration officials are briefing reporters here in washington overnight. it's a long and complex story, but it goes something like this -- four years ago, we're told, u.s. intelligence started looking very closely at people they believed to be close to osama bin laden, particularly one man, a courier, who they

thought was carrying messages for him. two years ago, they say they identified who this man was, and it was this man, according to the version of events we got here in washington, that led them to a compound, a big -walled compound, in the city of abbottabad, not far from islamabad in pakistan. when u.s. analysts started looking at this compound using satellite pictures and all the other tricks of their trade, they discovered that it was very big, had very high walls, it was very private, and it was just the sort of place they thought that you might find somebody who was trying to hide from prying eyes. and over the months, they monitored it, and they began to wonder if this was not the place that osama bin laden was hiding out. last september, president obama was briefed about this compound and the intelligence. by february and march, the president was having regular meetings, we're told, with his security advisors, discussing the possibility of an attack on this compound. late last week, he authorized

the attack. four helicopters went in, carrying u.s. special forces. this was, we're told, emphatically a u.s. operation, about which the pakistanis knew little, we're told. three people died aside from osama bin laden in the fire fight. a woman was also killed when she was used as a human shield. one of the men killed was osama bin laden's son. they were on the ground less than 40 minutes. they left, we are told now also that osama bin laden's body has already been disposed of at sea. that's an overview of what we're told happened tonight. no doubt more details will emerge as time goes on. >> ok, adam brooks in washington, thank you very much. >> let's shift from washington, d.c., to kabul and speak to bbc's quentin somerville. looking at some of the comments hamid karzai has been making,

it sounds like he feels vindicated by osama bin laden being found in pakistan. >> that's right. president karzai was practically crowing. he made the announcement to a gathering of tribal elders, and when he gave the news osama bin laden is dead, a huge cheer went off in the room. al qaeda had actually targeted some of those tribal leaders and killed some of them. but as well as that sense of vindication because president karzai said osama bin laden wasn't found in any of the provinces of afghanistan, he wasn't found in our homes and villages, he was found outside our borders, and the war on terror has to be fought outside our borders, there is also a worry from other senior officials here in afghanistan and political leaders that the united states may think this is now mission accomplished and might begin to gradually turn its back on afghanistan. they say only half the job is done because, of course, the taliban are still here. al qaeda is still here in some numbers, albeit small numbers,

and they believe -- afghan officials believe that mullah omar, the leader of the taliban, has sought sanctuary in a pakistani city. >> and quentin, the people you're speaking to in kabul, do they believe that the death of osama bin laden will have any practical impact on the taliban and al qaeda in afghanistan? >> well, certainly this is being viewed as a symbolic success, that it might knock the wind out of some of the fighters. president karzai himself said this is a message for the taliban, come to the table, start to talk, because you've seen what's happened to osama bin laden, and the same could happen to you no matter where you try and hide in the world, whether it's in afghanistan or outside in pakistan. but there's a sense when you speak to -- i've been speaking to sources running the international mission here, and it's been business as usual. there was a pause this morning during general david petraeus' regular meeting, the

announcement was made that osama bin laden had been killed. then they got on with the rest of the meet being, and that's the message we are getting from military compounds and from bases across the country, that soldiers are very satisfied that this has happened, but they're still going on patrols and still getting ready to fight the taliban and look for the remaining al qaeda soldiers here in afghanistan. >> live from kabul, many thanks. >> reaction has been pouring in worldwide, and people have taken to the streets in america, in particular in new york and washington. in new york, celebrations are underway. hundreds of people made their way to ground zero, the scene of the 9/11 attacks. times square has also been a focus for jubilant new yorkers. here's a couple of them. >> it's been a long time coming, but i'm sure america and all the allies of america and family members of all the victims feel some sense of relief that, you know, justice has finally been served. you know, that will never help

them with the pain that they are experiencing, but i'm sure it gives them some measure of closure, and one less terrorist in this world is a great start, and he was a big one, and he's gone now, so hopefully peace will begin to spread. >> it's just amazing. we were walking out of the pizza joint, and all the sudden we saw it on the bar and tv, and everyone was just glued. we're standing around a bunch of people who are from everywhere. >> not often that you celebrate a death, but this is one of those occasions where it's a good thing as far as i'm concerned. i was hoping that in my lifetime this would happen, and it has happened. it doesn't bring back the people who died in the incident, but i think justice has been done. i'm happy to know that he now knows that there are not 40 virgins waiting for him. >> amazing. amazing. i'm not sure, of course, this is a good news, but i'm sure it will not change a lot of

things, because al qaeda is such -- i'm not sure it will change a lot of things. >> it was a long time, and it's quite -- it's quite strange that all these countries fighting against him had needed 10 years to find him. >> some of the voices on the streets in times square in new york. let's go live to the city now. our correspondent is at ground zero, joins us on the line. barbara, how many people are out there? >> i'd say there's about 100, 150 people here right now, although the crowd was much bigger earlier. it is about half of 4:00 in the morning at the moment, and i imagine the crowds will swell again as people start to wake up. but there's a fairly exuberant atmosphere here, a lot of chanting and singing, waving flags, various beer bottles being flung, singing "god bless america," very patriotic

feeling, chants of "u.s.a., u.s.a.," bursting into the national anthem occasionally. on the other hand, there are a few people also on the pavement here sitting quietly with some candles lit, obviously having some sort of a memorial moment while they're remembering the victims of 9/11, not just the fact that the perpetrator of the attacks has been killed. but i think one man said to me earlier, i'm really glad it was us -- that is the americans -- who nailed him, and i think there's very much a feeling like that, we got him. >> some people might be a little surprised at this american reaction. might profound relief, not a sense of jubilation. >> well, it's been 10 years since 9/11, and osama bin laden has not been captured or killed during that time, and it's always been a priority of the american government, as stated. there have been two wars conducted, in name at least,

for this purpose, and they hadn't achieved this particular target. so i think the feeling here is that now at least something has been done. again, one man said to me, it's 10 years too late, but i'm glad that it happened. he said he didn't think it would necessarily change things in a way. in fact, he thought things might get worse, there might be retaliation. that's what some other people have said, the wars that america has become embroiled in since continue. but at least he said he felt that justice had now been done. >> looking at some of the pictures that we've had from where you are, a lot of the people seem to be quite young. they must have been children, some of them, which 9/11 happened. how big a scar is it on people's consciousness still? >> i think it is a fairly big scar still, especially here in new york. it was a very traumatic event for the city itself. and you remember in president obama's speech, he talked about how the city united afterwards in helping people who had lost

relatives and just getting a i is a strong consciousness about t. in fact, one man said to me in times square, "i've been told this is the most important historic event for the united states since the end of the second world war." i said, are you sure about that? but anyway, that was the sense there, that it was a very traumatic event for the americans to be attacked on their home land, and the killing was american who was behind it is significant for them for that reason. >> ok, many thanks, bar brafment >> news of osama bin laden's death has been welcomed around the world. but there are 4,000 tweets a minute coming in at the moment online, thousands of emails coming in from bbc from those of you watching. of course, world leaders have been giving their reactions. david cameron said it would bring great relief to people across the world. the italian prime minister, silvio berlusconi, hailed the killing of osama bin laden ads a great outcome in the fight against evil. and in afghanistan, president karzai told the taliban to

learn lessons from his death and stop fighting. let's get more on this from humphrey hawksley. >> around the world, breaking news that osama bin laden's dead, a line drawn under the likes of a man who redefined global warfare. in afghanistan, the country that boar the brunt of america's response, they watched president obama tell the story of the special forces mission that killed him. >> i felt very happy because he led our country toward blood shed and destruction. it's very good news at the murderer of our nation has now been killed. >> and the president had a message on how the fight against the taliban should now be waged. >> the fight against terrorism is not in bombing children and women in afghanistan. the fight against terrorism should be carried out in safe havens, sanctuaries, and training camps, not in afghanistan. today, this has been proved

right. >> iraq was also invaded and occupied as part of the war on terror. still dangerous and recovering from its war, the view on the streets was cautious. >> the episode of bin laden has ended now that america has been able to kill him. innocent nations have had to pay the price for the monster that was created since petraeus pained a picture, and ultimately innocent people who had nothing to do with them had to pay the price. >> in britain, itself an al qaeda target, the mood was upbeat. >> i would like to congratulate the u.s. forces who carried out this brave action. i'd like to thank president obama for ordering this action. and i think it's a moment when too we should thank all of those who worked day and night, often with no recognition, to keep us safe from the threat of terror. >> a sentiment echoed by other european leaders.

it's very good news for all peaceful and liberal people all over the world, says germany, that a stop has been put to this terrorist. the warning is, while welcome, bin laden's death will not usher in sudden peace and stability. humphrey hawksley, bbc news. >> of course, we've had also, as well as all the political reaction around the world, we've had market reaction. jamie? >> yes, as you can see, it's a reflection of what the country we've been interviewing, they're showing that kind of optimism, which has come through on the markets. the u.s. dollar has rebounded. stock markets have his known asia and europe after president obama announced that osama bin laden had been killed. oil prices slid more than 1%. safe haven such as gold and silver, they also lost value. let's find out more from our chief economist at the bank in saudi arabia. he joins us via webcam.

can you tell us why the markets have reacted this way? >> well, this is a knee-jerk reaction, jamie. the dollar is rebounding a little bit. of course because it's the u.s. that is involved in capturing and killing osama bin laden. stocks will probably appreciate, especially in the u.s. we've seen asia going up today only because the more riskier assets in times like this go up, so definitely i think we're going to see the short-term jubilation, but of course we have more problems in the global economy. >> is there any practical reason why, following the death of osama bin laden, there should be any improvement in any economy? iean, anyone see any kind of link to that? >> no, i don't think so. maybe temporary kind of feeling that everything is getting better, but still, we have problems in europe, sovereign debt crisis. we have medium to long-term challenges in the u.s. economy. the risk premium or premium in the middle east, uncertainty in

the middle east, and certainly oil prices at these exaggerated oil price levels will be a risk for the global economy. >> so when an investor looks particularly at north africa and the middle east, what are the main issues? if al qaeda is not so much a main issue, what are the main issues there? >> for specific countries such as yemen, it is still an issue, because al qaeda is still very much entrenched in yemen, and certainly saudi arabia will continue to be very vigilant. they have been fighting al qaeda since 2004, quite successfully. but certainly the issues are libya, what happens. syria, the continued violence and uncertainty, and nato is now going to intervene, and, of course, the concern that investors have about what happened to the wider middle east in the months to come. there's still uncertainty. >> ok, john, thanks very much indeed there. let's have a quick look at the markets at the moment.

ftse is closed today. we're on a holiday here. but the cac and dax, fairly thin trade. this is a result of that announcement from president obama. and also, we saw the asian markets, and the dollar rising. that's business news. we'll have more later. >> thank you very much indeed. thanks, jamie. michael is a former c.i.a. officer who said that the unit was respble for trying to track down al qaeda al qaeda al qaeda. he's now a professor of security studies at georgetown university and the author of the book "osama bin laden." he says osama's death is a success to the current u.s. administration. >> i think the men and women involved in the ground in this operation deserve high praise, and it couldn't be -- there couldn't be better news at the moment, but i think we all need to keep in mind, as your last clip said, that bin laden is an idea as much as an organization, and it's very much much more difficult to kill an idea than it is a man.

unfortunately, for us and the americans and their allies, we still have a very long hill to climb. >> explain to us the kind of obstacles that you and your team met in trying to track down osama bin laden. after all, this search has taken over nine years. , it's taken 16 i was very fortunate. i ran operations very early in our effort against osama bin laden, and between may of 1998 and may of 1999, we were able to pinpoint him on 10 different occasions, and mr. clinton at the time decided that he didn't want to shoot or to try to capture him. so i think we're very lucky that we got a second chance to get him today in abbottabad. >> and what about the information that we have that there was intelligence suggesting that osama bin laden was in this compound received in august? that was several months ago. are you surprised that it's

taken this long to act? >> well, it is a little bit -- i think it is a little bit upsetting to think that we waited that long, but this administration is very concerned about civilian casualties, and as things worked out, it went off ok. but it is a long time to wait, but sometimes these operations do take a long time to develop. >> and lots of comment online, that the pakistan military, the pakistani intelligence community should have known about this. after all, the compound is just 800 meters from the pakistan military academy in abbottabad. did you come up against resistance when you were trying to track down osama bin laden? >> osama was pretty much in afghanistan when we were working against him, but i think it's always been an incorrect assumption on the part of the british and american governments that pakistan's interests were the same as ours. i think they probably will pay a very serious price in terms of domestic violence for the

death of osama bin laden tonight or today at the hands of the united states. i have said since i retired in 2004 that ultimately britain and the united states and their allies are going to have to do their own dirty work in this war and not depend on proxies, and i think that, to some extent, is what happened today. we could not depend on the pakistanis. we should not depend on them. and we decided to take our own actions. >> and so already it's been suggested that now that osama bin laden has been killed, the role of america and the role of the c.i.a. more specifically in pakistan needs to change. do you agree with that? >> i don't know what they mean by change. we still have an organization to kill. we still have to fight the taliban. bin laden is a combination of a sent-century theologian and a c.e.o., spent the last half dozen years dispersing his

organization to yemen, iraq, south africa, to gaza and palestine. so his organization as a whole was pretty well prepared for his death, although it will be a major blow to it. and so there's very many targets out there to work at this present time. >> and professor, after 9/11, the c.i.a. was criticized a great deal, and in fact, it was reformed partly as a consequence of the failure to stop the 9/11 attacks. do you think this is evidence of those reforms at work? >> no, i don't. well, i don't know. they certainly were -- i don't think the reforms had anything to do with it. i think they had the hard work of the men and women on the ground is what did it. and i have to say that anyone who wants to know why we went to iraq, why we had to go to afghanistan, why 9/11 occurred, simply read the 9/11 commission report, which points out that mr. clique had those 10 chances to kill him in 19998 and 1999, so i'm not sure reform was

necessary, except in terms of changing the president. >> thanks, professor, speaking to me earlier. he's an academic at georgetown university. >> well, these are the latest pictures that we have in from the compound where bin laden was killed. it was in the town of abbottabad. a special forces troop -- american special forces troop, along with helicopters, landed nearby. the troops went into the compound. there was a fire fight, and they were in for less than 40 minutes. you can see there's very high walls around that house. >> one of the most extraordinary pieces of information that's come out is that this compound is just 800 meters from the pakistan military academy. it's believed it was built around five or six years ago. stay here for more. >> hello and welcome. >> see the news unfold, get the top stories from around the globe and click-to-play video reports. go to bbc.com/news to experience the in-depth, expert

reporting of "bbc world news" online. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank. >> union bank has put its global expertise to work for a wide range of companies. what can we do for you? >> bbc world news was presented by kcet los angeles.