Internal emails offer details on bin Laden burial
WASHINGTON (AP) - Internal emails among U.S. military officers indicate that no sailors watched Osama bin Laden's burial at sea from the USS Carl Vinson and traditional Islamic procedures were followed during the ceremony.
The emails, obtained by The Associated Press through the Freedom of Information Act, are heavily blacked out, but are the first public disclosure of government information about the al-Qaida leader's death. The emails were released Wednesday by the Defense Department.
Bin Laden was killed on May 1, 2011, by a Navy SEAL team that assaulted his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
One email stamped secret and sent on May 2 by a senior Navy officer briefly describes how bin Laden's body was washed, wrapped in a white sheet, and then placed in a weighted bag.
According to another message from the Vinson's public affairs officer, only a small group of the ship's leadership was informed of the burial.
"Traditional procedures for Islamic burial was followed," the May 2 email from Rear Adm. Charles Gaouette reads. "The deceased's body was washed (ablution) then placed in a white sheet. The body was placed in a weighted bag. A military officer read prepared religious remarks, which were translated into Arabic by a native speaker. After the words were complete, the body was placed on a prepared flat board, tipped up, whereupon the deceased's body slid into the sea."
The email also included a cryptic reference to the intense secrecy surrounding the mission. "The paucity of documentary evidence in our possession is a reflection of the emphasis placed on operational security during the execution of this phase of the operation," Gaouette's message reads. Recipients of the email included Adm. Mike Mullen, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. James Mattis, the top officer at U.S. Central Command. Mullen retired from the military in September 2011.
Earlier, Gaouette, then the deputy commander of the Navy's Fifth Fleet, and another officer used code words to discuss whether the helicopters carrying the SEALs and bin Laden's body had arrived on the Vinson.
"Any news on the package for us?" he asked Rear Adm. Samuel Perez, commander of the carrier strike group that included the Vinson.
"FEDEX delivered the package," Perez responded. "Both trucks are safely enroute home base."
Although the Obama administration has pledged to be the most transparent in American history, it is keeping a tight hold on materials related to the bin Laden raid. In a response to separate requests from the AP for information about the mission, the Defense Department said in March that it could not locate any photographs or video taken during the raid or showing bin Laden's body. It also said it could not find any images of bin Laden's body on the Vinson.
The Pentagon also said it could not find any death certificate, autopsy report or results of DNA identification tests for bin Laden, or any pre-raid materials discussing how the government planned to dispose of bin Laden's body if he were killed.
The Defense Department also refused to confirm or deny the existence of helicopter maintenance logs and reports about the performance of military gear used in the raid. One of the stealth helicopters that carried the SEALs to Abbottabad crashed during the mission and its wreckage was left behind. People who lived near bin Laden's compound took photos of the disabled chopper.
The AP is appealing the Defense Department's decision. The CIA, which ran the bin Laden raid and has special legal authority to keep information from ever being made public, has not responded to AP's request for records about the mission.
The emails, obtained by The Associated Press through the Freedom of Information Act, are heavily blacked out, but are the first public disclosure of government information about the al-Qaida leader's death. The emails were released Wednesday by the Defense Department.
Bin Laden was killed on May 1, 2011, by a Navy SEAL team that assaulted his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
One email stamped secret and sent on May 2 by a senior Navy officer briefly describes how bin Laden's body was washed, wrapped in a white sheet, and then placed in a weighted bag.
According to another message from the Vinson's public affairs officer, only a small group of the ship's leadership was informed of the burial.
"Traditional procedures for Islamic burial was followed," the May 2 email from Rear Adm. Charles Gaouette reads. "The deceased's body was washed (ablution) then placed in a white sheet. The body was placed in a weighted bag. A military officer read prepared religious remarks, which were translated into Arabic by a native speaker. After the words were complete, the body was placed on a prepared flat board, tipped up, whereupon the deceased's body slid into the sea."
The email also included a cryptic reference to the intense secrecy surrounding the mission. "The paucity of documentary evidence in our possession is a reflection of the emphasis placed on operational security during the execution of this phase of the operation," Gaouette's message reads. Recipients of the email included Adm. Mike Mullen, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Gen. James Mattis, the top officer at U.S. Central Command. Mullen retired from the military in September 2011.
Earlier, Gaouette, then the deputy commander of the Navy's Fifth Fleet, and another officer used code words to discuss whether the helicopters carrying the SEALs and bin Laden's body had arrived on the Vinson.
"Any news on the package for us?" he asked Rear Adm. Samuel Perez, commander of the carrier strike group that included the Vinson.
"FEDEX delivered the package," Perez responded. "Both trucks are safely enroute home base."
Although the Obama administration has pledged to be the most transparent in American history, it is keeping a tight hold on materials related to the bin Laden raid. In a response to separate requests from the AP for information about the mission, the Defense Department said in March that it could not locate any photographs or video taken during the raid or showing bin Laden's body. It also said it could not find any images of bin Laden's body on the Vinson.
The Pentagon also said it could not find any death certificate, autopsy report or results of DNA identification tests for bin Laden, or any pre-raid materials discussing how the government planned to dispose of bin Laden's body if he were killed.
The Defense Department also refused to confirm or deny the existence of helicopter maintenance logs and reports about the performance of military gear used in the raid. One of the stealth helicopters that carried the SEALs to Abbottabad crashed during the mission and its wreckage was left behind. People who lived near bin Laden's compound took photos of the disabled chopper.
The AP is appealing the Defense Department's decision. The CIA, which ran the bin Laden raid and has special legal authority to keep information from ever being made public, has not responded to AP's request for records about the mission.
I try very hard not to buy into conspiracy plots. But... twice in my life I have had that deep down gut feeling that the truth was being kept from us. The first.. 9/11. The second.. The supposed assassination of Bin Laden.
So basically no records exist that prove bin Laden was actually captured and I'm just supposed to blindly believe the lying government word? Just like all those weapons Saddam supposedly had.. even the official story of how vietnam has been proven to be a lie.
 @Jamie He's alive and well and living in George W Bush's basement.
 @JamieÂ
Just an FYI.
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Saddam did have WMD's. He had thousands of gallons of organophosphate poison that he shipped to Syria in flights designated as humanitarian. He also shipped thousands of gallons in trucks to Syria. Now there is significant worry that Syria will lose track of those weapons and fall into the hands of terrorists. If they can take over Syria intact they will have the means to deliver those weapons to the heart of Israel.
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As recently as July most people were discounting the chemical weapons from Iraq in Syria but now that the rebellion is in full swing the truth is coming out.
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My prediction is that some of those will be used somewhere. Assad will not go quietly and will use whatever he can to stay in power. Innocent lives means nothing to him.
 @RalphCramden Saddam did _NOT_ have all the crap that Colin Powell claimed he had. Yes, I know they're playing up that same old game with Syria now.. only a stupid person would believe the lies again.
 @JamieÂ
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Here is where Syria admits to having WMD's.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18955114
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303644004577523251596963194.html
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Here is where Syria says they have WMD's and will only use them in the case of external aggression against Syria.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57479291/syrias-chemical-weapon-stockpile-has-wests-attention/
 @RalphCramden Thanks Ralph, you validated my last point.
 @JamieÂ
Unfortunately recent developments do not back up your statement. More and more evidence is coming to light that Saddam did have lots of WMD's and moved them to Syria. As the civil war progresses and high ranking generals are switching sides intelligence is getting a clearer picture of just how much Saddam had. And it was a lot.
 @Jamie The Powers That Be want a nation of sheep...give the sheep their sports and fantasy leagues along with Dancing with the Stars and American Idol...don't forget to throw in the annual 'Holiday' $ale...and all will be fine; just as long as the sheep don't star asking questions like, "Why was thermite (residue from controlled demolitions) found at Ground Zero, yet not mentioned in the 9/11 Commission Report?".Â