President Obama is confirming the death of notorious terrorist Osama bin Laden.  In a late night address, Obama said the al-Qaeda leader was targeted in a covert U.S. operation in a compound in Pakistan and was killed in a firefight.  U.S. officials took custody of his body.  The President authorized the mission after receiving actionable intelligence on bin Laden’s whereabouts.  Obama called bin Laden a vicious mass murderer and said the U.S. has been relentless in hunting him down.  Obama added that justice has been done.

The White House reports this morning that DNA has confirmed that bin Laden was killed.

Officials are revealing more details about the mission that killed Osama bin Laden.  Bin Laden wasn’t found in a cave, but in a fortified compound in the city of Abbottabad in northern Pakistan.  One administration official said the mansion stuck out like a sore thumb in the Pakistani city, but didn’t have Internet or telephone service.  They found the site by tracking one of bin Laden’s most trusted couriers, who lived there with his brother.

Former President George W. Bush believes the U.S. mission that killed al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden a “momentous achievement.”  Upon receiving the news of bin Laden’s death, Bush released a statement hailing it as a, quote, “victory for America, for people who seek peace around the world, and for all those who lost loved ones on September 11th, 2001.” 

 The State Department is warning Americans to exercise caution amidst possible retaliation for the death of Osama bin Laden.  The Department says there’s an “enhanced potential for anti-American violence.”  It says citizens who are in areas where there’s a potential for that sort of violence should avoid mass gathering and limit their travel outside of their homes.  Meanwhile, both Washington, DC and New York City are under heightened alert following bin Laden’s death.