Osama bin Laden Is Dead

Acting on orders of President Barack Obama, U.S. military forces killed Osama bin Laden yesterday.

Obama made the announcement just before midnight May 1.

According to Obama, military personnel engaged in a brief firefight in Pakistan during which bin Laden was shot and killed. U.S. military personnel have custody of the body.

The announcement of the death comes nearly a decade after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York City and Pennsylvania that claimed thousands of American lives.

During his address to the nation, President Obama reflected on the attacks.

“The American people did not choose this fight. It came to our shores and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens.

“Nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us, leaving a gaping hole in our hearts,” Obama said. “On that day, no matter where we came from, or what god we prayed to … we were united as one American family.”

Obama called bin Laden’s death as the “most significant achievement to date” in the fight against al-Qaeda, the terrorist organization headed up by bin Laden and responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks.

While bin Laden’s death is a blow to that organization, Obama said the fight is not over.

“We must and we will remain vigilant at home and abroad,” Obama said.

Still, he said, “justice has been done.”

For more coverage of the President's press conference, visit the Huffington Post at huffingtonpost.com.