Updated

Updated · Fox News · Jul 13

Matt Bissonnette Reveals 2011 Bin Laden Raid Details, Disputing Accounts of Face Shots

Updated

Updated · Fox News · Jul 13

Matt Bissonnette Reveals 2011 Bin Laden Raid Details, Disputing Accounts of Face Shots

Q: A SEAL says photos prove bin Laden's identity. Why, after 15 years, are they still a closely guarded secret?

They remain secret mainly because the U.S. government decided the security costs of releasing them outweighed the public value. After the 2011 raid, President Barack Obama said the photos would not be made public because they could inflame anti-American violence, serve as extremist propaganda, and create new security risks for U.S. personnel and interests abroad. That judgment has never been reversed, so the images have stayed classified and tightly held. The secrecy does not appear to reflect official doubt about bin Laden’s identity. U.S. officials said his identity was confirmed through multiple means, including visual recognition by the assault force and DNA testing. Former SEAL Matt Bissonnette now says the photos would show bin Laden was “easily identifiable,” pushing back on the long-running claim that his face was too badly damaged for public release. Even so, governments often keep such images sealed for reasons beyond identification. The photos are part of a highly sensitive counterterrorism operation inside Pakistan, and releasing them could expose operational details, inflame diplomatic sensitivities, or revive disputes around the raid. There is also a longstanding U.S. practice of restricting graphic death imagery when officials believe publication could have strategic consequences. So, 15 years on, the issue is less whether the photos prove it was bin Laden and more that Washington has consistently judged that publishing them would create more risk than benefit.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 13

Matt Bissonnette, a former SEAL Team 6 member, said in a new interview released Monday that Osama bin Laden was hit by “high forehead shots,” disputing claims the al-Qaeda leader’s face was destroyed.
The former Red Squadron operator also challenged competing accounts of the third-floor assault, saying the unnamed pointman shot at bin Laden, followed those shots into the bedroom and did not peel away to pursue women or children.
Bissonnette said the May 2011 raid inside bin Laden’s Pakistan compound was “slow and methodical,” with operators focused on threats such as suicide vests or explosives rather than rushing upstairs.
The comments come as the U.S. marks the 15th anniversary of Operation Neptune Spear and as Bissonnette promotes a new book, adding fresh detail to a mission whose full record remains largely secret.