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Obama won't release bin Laden death photos

By Mike McCarthy May 4, 2011, 19:09 GMT

Armed Pakistani Police stands guard at the sealed entrance to the compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, on 05 May 2011. EPA/MD NADEEM

Washington - US President Barack Obama has decided against releasing photos of Osama bin Laden's body over concerns the images could incite violence or retribution against US military personnel and citizens abroad, the White House confirmed Wednesday.

Spokesman Jay Carney said the decision to keep the photos from the public should not raise any doubts that bin Laden died in the raid by US commandos at a compound in Pakistan. The US has confirmed the body was bin Laden's - through facial analysis, eyewitnesses and DNA testing, he said.

'There is no question Osama bin Laden is dead,' Carney said. 'He will not walk this Earth again.'

The White House has been under pressure to offer visual evidence of bin Laden's death since news of the successful raid emerged. The media, several members of Congress and some families of the victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks want a photo published.

Obama is scheduled to visit the World Trade Center site on Thursday in New York, where he plans to lay a wreath in memory of victims of the suicide strikes and the rescuers who put themselves in harms way. Meetings are also planned for the president with families of 9/11 victims.

Obama informed CBS News of his decision on Wednesday in a taped interview for Sunday's edition of the news programme 60 Minutes, parts of which were revealed online. Carney read a transcript of Obama's remarks regarding the bin Laden photos.

'It is important for us to make sure that very graphic photos of somebody who was shot in the head are not floating around as an incitement to additional violence or as a propaganda tool,' Obama said. 'That's not who we are. We don't trot out this stuff as trophies.'

'Given the graphic nature of these photos, it would create some national security risk,' he said.

Obama confirmed he had seen a photo of bin Laden's corpse. Asked his reaction, Obama replied: 'It was him.'

Carney previously told reporters that the issue was still under discussion, cautioning that the images were sensitive, 'gruesome' and could be 'inflammatory.'

The White House has reportedly been divided over whether to release the photos. Central Intelligence Agency Director Leon Panetta has said in recent television interviews he was confident that the photos would be released in time.

There are concerns that failing to release the photos could fuel conspiracy theories questioning bin Laden's fate.

Meanwhile, the top US law enforcement officer said Wednesday the killing of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan was legal and consistent with the laws of war.

Bin Laden 'was, by my estimation and the estimation of the US Justice Department, a lawful military target,' Attorney General Eric Holder said at a Senate hearing. 'And the operation was conducted in a way that's consistent with our law, with our values.'

Questions have been raised about whether the elite US commandos who stormed bin Laden's hideout in Abbottabad should have killed him, following a White clarification Tuesday that he was unarmed.

The US said the Navy SEALs had encountered significant resistance during the raid, including a firefight, and that the shooting of bin Laden was justified. They say the soldiers were open to taking bin Laden alive if there was no resistance. Holder said it is within the law to 'target an enemy commander in the field.'

'If he had surrendered - attempted to surrender - I think we should, obviously, have accepted that,' Holder said. 'But there was no indication that he wanted to do that. And, therefore, his killing was appropriate.'

Holder confirmed that intelligence and legal authorities were reviewing material that was seized during the raid that could provide additional clues about security threats. He said the information would likely lead to an expansion of the so-called no-fly list, a system designed to prevent potential terrorist from boarding flights to the United States.

'As we glean information from that material we will make appropriate decisions with regard to who might be added to the terrorist watch list, the no-fly list, all those things,' he said.

Holder did not provide specifics about the items found in bin Laden's hideout. Media reports said there were large amounts of written and digital data taken from the site, including five computers, 10 hard drives and more than 100 storage devices such as DVDs and USB sticks.

Politico reported bin Laden had 500 euros (745 dollars) and two telephone numbers sewn into his clothing, indicating he was prepared to flee on a moment's notice.

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