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Under the prevailing narrative, Osama bin Laden was killed by Navy SEALS at bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, on May 2, 2011, at zero dark thirty, spy-jargon for "half past midnight," the time of bin Laden's death. According to this narrative, the raid was videotaped and photographs were taken. The body was then taken to the supercarrier USS Carl Vinson where traditional procedures for an Islamic burial were followed. The body was then placed in a weighted bag and slid into the sea.  

Several methods were used to confirm that bin Laden was actually killed, including DNA testing, facial-recognition techniques, a CIA analysis of photographs, and one of bin Laden's own wives had identified his body. Supposedly, bin Laden was buried so soon after his killing because according to Islamic practice and tradition the body must be buried within 24 hours. Why at sea? Probably because a grave site might end up being a place of worship for bin Laden followers. 

We know there was a raid in Pakistan because Pakistani officials condemned the "unilateral action . . . which constitutes a violation of Pakistan's sovereignty." During the raid, one of the Navy helicopters malfunctioned and was destroyed before the Navy SEALS left. There are images of the destroyed helicopter available on the internet. In fact, the U.S. is concerned that Pakistan gave China access to the high-tech helicopter.  

On May 6, 2011, al-Qaeda confirmed that Osama bin Laden was dead, dispelling doubts by some Muslims that the group's leader had really been killed by U.S. forces, and vowed to mount more attacks on the West. 

Why were the Bush and Obama Administrations so obsessed with assassinating bin Laden? Because bin Laden was the actual and symbolic leader of al-Qaeda, who in 2004 admitted ordering the September 11, 2001 attacks, which resulted in 2,977 deaths. The killing was part of the Administration's targeted assassination program, an extrajudicial execution. The U.N. General Assembly and Human Rights Commission, as well as Amnesty International, have all condemned extrajudicial executions. Will the U.S. be held accountable for this extrajudicial assassination? Probably not. 

All this evidence should convince skeptics that bin Laden was indeed killed by Navy SEALS on May 2, 2011. Unfortunately, the Obama administration has refused to release photographs, videotapes and other evidence establishing bin Laden's death, arguing that the photographs are gruesome and their release could damage national security. This refusal only fuels conspiracy theories, rumors, and hoaxes that bin Laden has been dead for years or is still alive. But is the U.S. government capable of engineering a giant hoax of this magnitude and keep it going over two years through a presidential election and the snooping of the Zero Dark Thirty filmmakers? I don't think so. 

The Obama Administration admits it released sensitive information about the bin Laden raid to the Zero Dark Thirty filmmakers but claims this same information could cause an "unnecessary security and counterintelligence risk" if released to the general public. What makes the filmmakers so special that they get access to "sensitive information" while the general public is left out?  

In Judicial Watch, Inc. v. DoD and CIA, Judicial Watch has asked the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to overturn a U.S. District Court ruling and instruct the DOD and CIA to release 52 images from the raid on bin Laden’s compound and bin Laden's burial at sea. A hearing was held on January 10, 2013. I doubt the Court of Appeals will require the government to release the images. 

Osama, where art thou? Lying at the bottom of the sea. There is ample actual and circumstantial evidence to support this conclusion.