Last Two Hours of Osama Bin Laden: Operation Neptune Spear

 

On Pak-Afghan Border

On the night of May 1 and 2, 2011, the turn to sleep with Sheikh Osama bin Laden was given to his youngest wife, Amal Ahmed. 29-year-old Amal Ahmed was from Yemen.

After dinner and prayers, at 11:10 PM, Amal, along with her 3-year-old son Hussein, sat on her bed in Osama bin Laden’s room.

Approximately 250 kilometers away to the west, at Bagram Airbase in eastern Afghanistan, the rotors of two stealth Black Hawk helicopters began spinning.

 

The Black Hawks, equipped with special radar-absorbing paint and panels, as well as noise-dampening devices, flew at low altitudes and high speeds. Between 11:15 PM and 11:30 PM, they entered Pakistani airspace from the Khyber Agency area. These two Black Hawks were being escorted by two other helicopters, possibly Chinooks, from behind. The four helicopters flew along the route of the Kabul River, passing over Chakdara and heading toward Kala Dhaka, now taking Navy SEALs toward their target in Abbottabad.

On the other side of the border, in Afghanistan’s airspace, U.S. forces ensured the presence of their combat aircraft for aerial patrols and AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) to counter any potential response from the Pakistani military immediately.

The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) radar was on peacetime deployment, and low-level coverage along the western border was minimal. At the Chakala Rawalpindi Air Defense Command, PAF controllers tracked the U.S. combat air patrols and AWACS in Afghan airspace, but they logged this activity as routine.

Osama Compound

Meanwhile, in Abbottabad, Osama bin Laden was sleeping with his wife Amal on the second floor of his compound. His two other wives, Khairiya and Sharifa Saham, were sleeping on the first floor of the building with their children and grandchildren. On the ground floor of the building, Osama’s messenger and bodyguard, Ibrahim Ahmed al-Kuwaiti, and his brother Abrar al-Kuwaiti were sleeping with their wives and children.

Approximately, one hour and ten minutes after leaving Jalalabad, the American helicopters arrived at the compound, in the New City town neighborhood of Abbottabad. U.S. Navy SEALs, using ropes, descended to the ground. Some of them, speaking Urdu and Pashto, moved toward the residential buildings and formed a perimeter around the compound to keep the local people away from the operation.

Around 12:30 AM, Osama bin Laden’s entire family woke up to a loud noise, as if a storm had arrived. Due to a power outage in the area, there was no electricity. The moon was obscured, and as a result, they could not see anything outside in the dark night to understand, what was happening.

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Implementation of the Operation

Osama bin Laden and his wife Amal could not see anything from the balcony of their room, so Amal attempted to turn on the light. Osama said,

“No, don’t do that.”

Osama went toward the door of his room to wake up his young son, Khalid bin Laden, who was sleeping with his mother, Sharifa, on the first floor.

Meanwhile, Amal ran downstairs to check on her children. Amal had five children in total. When Amal returned to Osama bin Laden’s room, she was accompanied by two of Osama’s daughters, 21-year-old Maryam and 20-year-old Sumayyah. They all began reciting the Kalma Sharif and Quranic verses.

Osama bin Laden told his daughters Maryam, Sumayyah, and his wife that these were American helicopters and the American soldiers had come to kill them. Therefore, they should all leave Osama’s room. However, they all refused to leave him alone. Maryam and her children went toward the balcony to assess the situation, while Osama immediately grabbed his weapon.

At the same time, they heard a loud explosion outside, which was likely the sound of a helicopter crash. They also heard the rapid footsteps of soldiers on the roof.

Then, they heard footsteps on the stairs. Suddenly, Osama bin Laden’s youngest wife, Amal, saw an American soldier land right in front of their bedroom. He aimed his weapon at Osama. Amal saw a red light coming from the American soldier’s weapon, which was directed at Osama, and Osama fell. However, there was no sound of a gunshot.

Amal rushed toward the American soldier to either grab his weapon or stop him. But the American soldier shouted,

“No, no…”

and fired at Amal’s knee, causing her to fall and lose consciousness. She could no longer see anything and could only hear voices, in which her daughters were being asked what the name of the person lying in front of them was.

Source

This is the story that later was presented by Osama bin Laden’s wife, Amal, in her statement before the ‘Abbottabad Commission’ established in Pakistan. The report was allegedly leaked afterward, and the Qatari broadcasting agency, Al Jazeera, published this alleged report.

Are You OBL?

In this alleged report, Osama bin Laden’s daughter, Sumayyah, while describing the events of the night of May 2, 2011, says that when she woke up to the sound of helicopters, she ran upstairs to her father’s room. Upon reaching the room, she found her father lying on the floor, covered in blood. She saw that the bullet had struck Osama’s forehead. The American soldiers asked Sumayyah who the person was, and she replied,

“My father.”

When the same question was asked to Osama’s second daughter, Maryam, she responded,

“Abdullah bin Mohammed.”

This was a new name for the American soldiers, as they were unfamiliar with Osama’s real name,

“Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden.”

Sumayyah then told Maryam to tell them the correct name, because the Americans did not know Osama’s real name. Finally, they informed them that this was their father, Osama bin Laden.

OBL Bodyguard Conversation

While Osama bin Laden’s messenger and bodyguard, Ibrahim al-Kuwaiti, was sleeping on the ground floor with his wife, Maryam, and children. He was awakened by a loud explosion. His children started screaming in fear. As he tried to calm them down, al-Kuwaiti received a phone call. According to his wife’s statement, he asked if it was his brother Abrar – who was also Osama’s guard and courier, and had been staying in another room of the house.

He received no answer.

“Abrar, I can’t hear you. I am coming,”

he said,

There was a knock at the door.

“Is that you, Abrar?”

he asked as he opened the door.

A bullet came from the other side of the window and struck Ibrahim al-Kuwaiti, causing him to fall to the floor. As he fell, his feet hit the door, causing it to automatically close from the inside.

Then, Ibrahim’s wife, Maryam, is shot in the right shoulder and falls to the floor. Her children run towards her, screaming, while American soldiers shout from outside, demanding that she open the door.

Maryam responds:

“You have killed my husband, and now only my children and I are in the room.”

In Arabic, one of the American soldiers shouted, that if she doesn’t open the door, they will blow up the room. In her injured state, she drags herself to open the door. The American soldiers begin to search her physically, but Maryam resists, at this point, the soldier slaps her. Maryam then says, “Allahu Akbar (God is Great)”

One of the soldiers then tells her in Urdu to sit outside the building on the stairs with her children, where two soldiers will guard them. Ibrahim al-Kuwaiti and his brother were actually Pakistani Pashtuns from Shangla, Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. When Ibrahim was born, his parents were living in Kuwait, which is why he was known by the name al-Kuwaiti.

OBL Wives’ Reaction

Sharifa Saham was the second of Osama bin Laden’s three wives, who was in her room on the second floor with her son, Khalid bin Laden, during the early part of the raid. When she realized that U.S. forces were raiding the compound, she saw Khalid rushing with his weapon to help his father. She was with bin Laden’s eldest wife, Khairiya, when they were detained by the American forces a short time later.

When the soldiers forcefully entered, Khairiya said that one of them “looked like a witch!”

The women and their rooms were searched, and then the soldiers led them downstairs.

At the same time, Sharifa saw the body of her son Khalid lying on the stairs. They also found the dead bodies of Abrar Al Kuwaiti and his Pakistani wife Bushra.

Then Sharifa knelt down to kiss her dead son’s forehead.

Return to Jalalabad

American soldiers remained in Osama bin Laden’s compound for 30 to 40 minutes, and then took Osama bin Laden’s dead body with them to Jalalabad. They left behind four bodies, including Osama bin Laden’s 23-year-old son, Khalid bin Laden, 33-year-old Ibrahim al-Kuwaiti, Ibrahim’s 30-year-old brother Abrar, and Abrar’s wife Bushra.

 

After staying in Pakistani airspace for three hours, the American helicopters left Pakistani space and reached Jalalabad around 2:26 AM.

Immediately after the Americans left, Pakistani security forces reached at the spot, and took control of Osama’s compound. The family members of Osama, including his three wives, children, Ibrahim al-Kuwaiti, and his brother Abrar’s children, were taken into custody for questioning. Osama’s wife Amal and Ibrahim’s wife Maryam, due to their injuries, were admitted to the hospital, and this happened while the morning prayer call was being heard.

Final Touch

After the raid, the U.S. forces returned to Afghanistan with bin Laden’s body for identification. After identification was completed, Osama’s body was transported from Jalalabad, covering a distance of over 850 miles (1,370 kilometers), towards the Arabian Sea. According to U.S. President Obama, Osama was buried at sea in accordance with Islamic tradition. According to U.S. officials, bin Laden was buried at sea because no country was willing to accept his remains.

Before the body was buried at sea, the United States contacted the Saudi Arabian government, which gave approval for the burial at sea. Within 24 hours of bin Laden’s death, a funeral was held for him according to Muslim religious rituals on the USS Carl Vinson in the northern Arabian Sea. Preparations began at 10:10 AM local time, and the burial at sea was completed by 11 AM. The body was washed, wrapped in a white shroud, and placed in a heavy plastic bag. An officer recited the prescribed religious words, which were translated into Arabic by a local speaker. The body was then placed on a flat board, and when the board was tilted, Osama bin Laden’s body was sent into the sea.

 

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