Controversy Erupts in U.S. Over New Bin Laden Death Theory

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Pulitzer-winning journalist Seymour Hersh accuses the White House of lying about the 2011 raid

By Staff Writer | Open Chronicle with Agencies

Washington, D.C. — A bold new theory about the 2011 death of Osama bin Laden has ignited fierce debate across the United States. Legendary investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, a Pulitzer Prize winner, alleges that the U.S. government fabricated key aspects of the official narrative surrounding the killing of the Al-Qaeda leader in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

In a detailed article published in the London Review of Books, Hersh claims the operation was not a high-risk, covert raid conducted solely by U.S. Navy SEALs, but rather a carefully managed mission carried out with the full cooperation of Pakistan’s military and intelligence agencies. His version suggests that bin Laden had been held in Pakistani custody for five years, with Saudi financial support, before the Americans were tipped off by a Pakistani informant, not through intelligence tracking his courier, as previously reported.

“The White House’s story could have been written by Lewis Carroll,” Hersh wrote, referencing the author of Alice in Wonderland, implying that the official account was more fantasy than fact.

A Deal in the Shadows?

According to Hersh, senior Pakistani officials agreed to allow the U.S. to conduct a controlled operation to confirm bin Laden’s identity through DNA and execute him. Only shots fired that night, he says, were those that killed the Al-Qaeda leader, contradicting claims of an intense firefight. In exchange, the U.S. reportedly promised financial support for Pakistan’s intelligence services. Initially, it agreed to delay the public announcement of bin Laden’s death, planning to claim he was killed in a drone strike in Afghanistan.

But the plan allegedly fell apart after one of the American helicopters crashed during the raid, prompting President Obama to address the nation immediately, fearing the story would leak.

Official Backlash

The Obama administration strongly rejected Hersh’s allegations. “The notion that the operation that killed Osama bin Laden was anything but a unilateral U.S. mission is false,” a White House spokesperson said, dismissing the article as “riddled with inaccuracies and baseless claims.”

American journalists also pushed back. Peter Bergen of CNN, who visited the Abbottabad compound, reported visible evidence of a firefight, including shattered windows and bullet-riddled walls. Bergen also cited conflicting eyewitness accounts from SEAL Team 6 members who had publicly shared their experiences of the operation.

Max Fisher of Vox criticized the article’s reliance on unnamed sources, including ex-intelligence officials no longer active in operations. The only named source, former Pakistani General Asad Durrani, admitted that he was speculating based on conversations with former colleagues and later told CNN that Hersh’s theory was merely “plausible.”

Critics Question Logic and Evidence

Commentators raised several contradictions in Hersh’s account:

• Fragile sources: The primary evidence comes from anonymous officials, most of whom were not directly involved in the raid.

• Contradictory eyewitnesses: Public accounts from SEALs contradict Hersh’s version of a calm execution.

• Motivational doubts: Critics question why Saudi Arabia would finance the protection of bin Laden, a figure who opposed its monarchy, or why U.S.–Pakistan relations would have deteriorated if a secret agreement had existed.

“Maybe there’s a vast, dark web of conspiracy out there,” Fisher quipped in his article. “And maybe only Hersh and a few anonymous ex-officials can see it. Or maybe there’s a simpler explanation.”

A Polarizing Figure

Hersh, who made his name uncovering the My Lai Massacre during the Vietnam War, has faced increasing scrutiny in recent years for controversial claims. He previously alleged that the Bush administration trained Iranian dissidents in Nevada and that Turkey orchestrated chemical attacks in Syria—stories widely challenged for their lack of substantiation.

His latest article has been praised by some conservative commentators who typically oppose him. “When Seymour Hersh spins conspiracy theories about Obama, he becomes an eccentric,” wrote John Nolte of Breitbart. “When he targeted Bush, the media hailed him as a prophet.”

Hersh Defends His Work

In a television interview aired Monday, Hersh stood by his reporting. “Twenty-four guys fly into Pakistan, kill someone with no air support, no backup, no resistance—you’ve got to be kidding me,” he said. “Sorry if my story goes against the current, but that’s what I’ve done all my life. I know what this means, and I’m ready.”

As the debate rages, the story has reignited old questions about secrecy, foreign policy, and the murky intersection between journalism and national security. Whether Hersh has uncovered a buried truth or simply stirred a hornet’s nest remains to be seen.