Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

What Do We Really Know About Osama bin Laden’s Death?
The New York Times ^ | 15 Oct 2015 | Jonathan Mahler

Posted on 10/15/2015 1:22:29 PM PDT by Theoria

The history of Obama’s most important foreign-policy victory is still being written.

Mark Bowden was watching a ballgame — the Phillies versus the Mets — on the night of May 1, 2011, when the network cut away to President Obama in the East Room of the White House. “Tonight,” the president said, ‘‘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 and a terrorist who’s responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women and children.’’

Five minutes or so after the president wrapped up his brief remarks, as thousands of Americans gathered in front of the White House and at ground zero chanting ‘‘U-S-A! U-S-A!’’ Bowden’s cellphone rang. It was Mike Stenson, the president of Jerry Bruckheimer Films. Bowden had worked with Bruckheimer on the film adaptation of his 1999 best seller, ‘‘Black Hawk Down.’’

‘‘Mike said, ‘Look, Mark, Jerry wants to make a movie about this bin Laden thing, and he wants to put together all of the people who made ‘Black Hawk Down,’ ’’ Bowden told me over lunch recently. ‘‘ ‘He wants to know: Would you be willing to write the script?’ ’’

Bowden said absolutely, count him in.

He quickly reached out to Jay Carney, Obama’s press secretary at the time, to ask for an interview with the president. Bowden was friendly with Carney from a profile he wrote of Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. for The Atlantic. Still, he was surprised to hear back from him almost right away. It was an encouraging response, especially given the deluge of requests Bowden knew the president must be receiving. Carney said that he couldn’t make any promises but that he would definitely advocate on his behalf.

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: markbowden; obl; osamabinladen; wot
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-34 next last

1 posted on 10/15/2015 1:22:30 PM PDT by Theoria
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Theoria

We know we were lied to about it, it it happened at all.


2 posted on 10/15/2015 1:28:08 PM PDT by Norm Lenhart
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Theoria

Going on National TV to announce it was a disgraceful act of stupidity.

It elevated OBL to a level of importance of warranting a Presidential Announcement, and also inflamed more idiots with him spiking the ball.

They should have let the military say it in a minor news release, as if it was as unimportant as a piece of dirt.


3 posted on 10/15/2015 1:37:48 PM PDT by Mr. K (If it is HilLIARy -vs- Jeb! then I am writing-in Palin/Cruz)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Norm Lenhart

He ain’t dead


4 posted on 10/15/2015 1:39:34 PM PDT by harwood (You don't wanna go there.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Theoria

We know that we will never know the truth.


5 posted on 10/15/2015 1:41:21 PM PDT by Wilderness Conservative
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Theoria

Where’s the Death Certificate?


6 posted on 10/15/2015 1:41:26 PM PDT by dfwgator
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Theoria

We already know that Obemba cannot open his mouth without lying. Why should we believe him when he says that OBL is dead?


7 posted on 10/15/2015 1:41:44 PM PDT by spel_grammer_an_punct_polise (Why does every totalitarian, political hack think that he knows how to run my life better than I?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Theoria

It has been hinted at that Obama was not even aware the mission was underway. That might explain the look he had in the situation room. He looked like he was an assistant to the general at the head of the table. He also looked like he did not want to be there.


8 posted on 10/15/2015 1:43:05 PM PDT by ealgeone
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Theoria

We know more about OBL’s fake death than we do about BHO’s fake life.


9 posted on 10/15/2015 1:49:06 PM PDT by bgill ( CDC site, "we still do not know exactly how people are infected with Ebola")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Theoria

Osama Bin Laden Death: New Details Revealed About Burial
Posted: 11/21/2012 3:21 pm EST Updated: 01/21/2013 5:12 am EST

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/politics

WASHINGTON — Internal emails among U.S. military officers indicate that no sailors watched Osama bin Laden’s burial at sea from the USS Carl Vinson and traditional Islamic procedures were followed during the ceremony.

The emails, obtained by The Associated Press through the Freedom of Information Act, are heavily blacked out, but are the first public disclosure of government information about the al-Qaida leader’s death. The emails were released Wednesday by the Defense Department.

Bin Laden was killed on May 1, 2011, by a Navy SEAL team that assaulted his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

One email stamped secret and sent on May 2 by a senior Navy officer briefly describes how bin Laden’s body was washed, wrapped in a white sheet, and then placed in a weighted bag.

According to another message from the Vinson’s public affairs officer, only a small group of the ship’s leadership was informed of the burial.

“Traditional procedures for Islamic burial was followed,” the May 2 email from Rear Adm. Charles Gaouette reads. “The deceased’s body was washed (ablution) then placed in a white sheet. The body was placed in a weighted bag. A military officer read prepared religious remarks, which were translated into Arabic by a native speaker. After the words were complete, the body was placed on a prepared flat board, tipped up, whereupon the deceased’s body slid into the sea.”

The email also included a cryptic reference to the intense secrecy surrounding the mission. “The paucity of documentary evidence in our possession is a reflection of the emphasis placed on operational security during the execution of this phase of the operation,” Gaouette’s message reads. Recipients of the email included Adm. Mike Mullen, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. James Mattis, the top officer at U.S. Central Command. Mullen retired from the military in September 2011.

Earlier, Gaouette, then the deputy commander of the Navy’s Fifth Fleet, and another officer used code words to discuss whether the helicopters carrying the SEALs and bin Laden’s body had arrived on the Vinson.

“Any news on the package for us?” he asked Rear Adm. Samuel Perez, commander of the carrier strike group that included the Vinson.

“FEDEX delivered the package,” Perez responded. “Both trucks are safely enroute home base.”

Although the Obama administration has pledged to be the most transparent in American history, it is keeping a tight hold on materials related to the bin Laden raid. In a response to separate requests from the AP for information about the mission, the Defense Department said in March that it could not locate any photographs or video taken during the raid or showing bin Laden’s body. It also said it could not find any images of bin Laden’s body on the Vinson.

The Pentagon also said it could not find any death certificate, autopsy report or results of DNA identification tests for bin Laden, or any pre-raid materials discussing how the government planned to dispose of bin Laden’s body if he were killed.

The Defense Department also refused to confirm or deny the existence of helicopter maintenance logs and reports about the performance of military gear used in the raid. One of the stealth helicopters that carried the SEALs to Abbottabad crashed during the mission and its wreckage was left behind. People who lived near bin Laden’s compound took photos of the disabled chopper.

The AP is appealing the Defense Department’s decision. The CIA, which ran the bin Laden raid and has special legal authority to keep information from ever being made public, has not responded to AP’s request for records about the mission.


10 posted on 10/15/2015 1:52:50 PM PDT by HarleyLady27 (I have such happy days, and hope you do too!!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ealgeone

There is very little doubt that the military did the hit on OBL over the strong objections of OZero, who didn’t want OBL harmed. In the end, the Joint Chiefs did what they wanted to do and told the pResident to sit down, shut up and let the patriots take command.

Perhaps our grandkids will eventually read about the intrigue in the Pentagon and the in-fighting between the pro-White House (aka pro-jihadist) faction and the traditionalists who actually wanted to protect the country. I suspect no president has ever seen as many of his orders ignored as this one has. Despite all his purges, OZero has never been able to completely control the military — which is a very good thing.


11 posted on 10/15/2015 1:54:30 PM PDT by GodAndCountryFirst
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: GodAndCountryFirst

It took 11 posts to find one that actually said OBL got whacked. Something is wrong with our nation mentally.


12 posted on 10/15/2015 2:00:09 PM PDT by pfflier
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: HarleyLady27

Burial at sea is considered pretty much a worst-case worst-treatment by adherents, washing & wrapping notwithstanding. Doctrine calls for doing so only if no other option was available - and I’m sure that on a Navy carrier, there was sufficient space in a freezer somewhere (an acceptable alternative until landfall).

Glad they dumped OBL overboard instead.


13 posted on 10/15/2015 2:00:47 PM PDT by ctdonath2 (Everyone entering NRA offices come out alive. Not so Planned Parenthood.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: Norm Lenhart

Yeh the chances that they hit Bin laden that night are about as good as me winning the Fantasy Five. Did they thaw him out and give him a chopper ride halfway to the ship? More likely. No pictures, no video no nothing. :-)


14 posted on 10/15/2015 2:12:00 PM PDT by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose of a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: ctdonath2

15 posted on 10/15/2015 2:14:03 PM PDT by bkopto
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: Georgia Girl 2

Oh and 16 dead SEALs shortly after.


16 posted on 10/15/2015 2:14:17 PM PDT by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose of a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: Georgia Girl 2

And only muslims supposedly saw the body on the boat...


17 posted on 10/15/2015 2:18:11 PM PDT by Norm Lenhart
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: Norm Lenhart

There was no problem showing Husseins sons utsy and putsy’s dead mangled bodies but it would be too much to show Bin Laden. I will never believe it in a million years unless I see a picture. Its another Govt Con job. Bin Laden was probably dead and in the freezer when GW was still President.


18 posted on 10/15/2015 2:24:20 PM PDT by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose of a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: Georgia Girl 2

I believe that. If he ever left Tora Bora at all. We will have UFOs on the White House lawn offering culinary advice before the govt ever admits the truth of OBL. Because both parties were involved. And thus openly liable for treason.


19 posted on 10/15/2015 2:29:45 PM PDT by Norm Lenhart
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: Theoria
‘What Do We Really Know About Osama bin Laden’s Death?’

We know they never produced a body.

We know that no insurance company in the World would pay off a death claim on the flimsy evidence that the Obama Administration produced.

We know that Pakistan never uttered a word even though we invaded their country, attacked a compound only a few miles away from their most important Military base and made off with a high value occupant who most certainly would be paying big $ in protection money.

We know that Obama would have never been reelected without having had this ‘victory’.

We know Obama and every person affiliated with his administration from the top adviser to the lowest member of the janitorial staff is little more than a congenital liar.

We know lots about thew OBL affair, just not anything concrete.

20 posted on 10/15/2015 2:43:02 PM PDT by Jim from C-Town (The government is rarely benevolent, often malevolent and never benign!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-34 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson