Artifacts Tell the Story of the Killing of Osama bin Laden

On this day in 2011, President Barack Obama announced to the nation that Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. forces in a raid of his Abbottabad, Pakistan compound. The 9/11 Memorial Museum collection is home to several artifacts related to Operation Neptune Spear that represent this important moment in our nation’s history.

Intended for wear under body armor, this camouflage shirt was worn by one of the U.S. Navy Seal Team Six members present when Osama bin Laden was killed during the nighttime raid of his hideout on May 1, 2011. The success of the mission, known as Operation Neptune Spear, ended a global manhunt — that started before 9/11 — for the ringleader of the al-Qaeda terrorist network.

This challenge coin commemorates the successful conclusion of Operation Neptune Spear. The coin features a blue border and white center with the date of the completed mission (“1 May | 2011”) on one side and a red “X” on the other. After 9/11, President George W. Bush kept a list in his desk of key al-Qaeda operatives still at large. Whenever one was exposed, arrested, or killed, he would make a red X mark through the assailant’s name. Osama bin Laden’s name was at the top of the list.

The coin was donated to the 9/11 Memorial Museum by “Maya,” the alias for the CIA operative who pursued bin Laden and whose personal narrative became the basis for the film “Zero Dark Thirty.”

Eluding capture, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and his family had been living in a “safe house” in Pakistan for several years before he was killed in 2011. Local authorities razed the compound in February 2012. Before the complex was completely demolished, journalist Dominic Di-Natale chiseled a brick from the house’s foundation as a souvenir. A correspondent with Fox News then based in the capital city of Islamabad, Di-Natale had been reporting on the War on Terror and the international manhunt for bin Laden.

Late on the night of May 1, 2011, in a televised address, U.S. President Barack Obama announced the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. Navy SEALs in Abbottabad, Pakistan. Like other efforts to thwart al-Qaeda, this mission reflected the work of untold numbers of men and women dedicated to ensuring U.S. and international security.

Brooklyn resident Cheryl Stewart placed a sign in her yard to count the days that bin Laden remained at large. By the morning of May 2, 2011, a passerby had taped a note to the sign to share the news.

By 9/11 Memorial Staff