'Osama Bin Laden was unarmed and ALREADY DYING when Navy SEALs burst into bedroom': Shocking claim by retired soldier that threatens to debunk official story of raid

No Easy Day reveals bin Laden was unarmed when troops rushed into his room in the Abottabad, Pakistan compound

Ex-Navy SEAL claims he was shot in the head when he peeked out of his room. SEALS then pumped his body full of bullets as he twitched



Author says commandos knew Obama would take credit for the mission

Joe Biden told 'lame jokes' like 'drunken uncle' at Christmas dinner

Pentagon, CIA and White House among the agencies who have not seen the book, written anonymously by a SEAL Team Six member

Author could face federal charges if classified information is revealed in book



Will hit bookstores on September 4 -- a week earlier than the original release



A firsthand account of the Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden contradicts previous accounts by administration officials, raising questions as to whether the terror mastermind presented a clear threat when SEALs first fired upon him.

Bin Laden apparently was hit in the head when he looked out of his bedroom door into the top-floor hallway of his compound as SEALs rushed up a narrow stairwell in his direction, according to former Navy SEAL Matt Bissonnette, writing under the pseudonym Mark Owen in 'No Easy Day.' The book is to be published next week by Penguin Group (USA)’s Dutton imprint.



Bissonnette says he was directly behind a 'point man' going up the stairs in the pitch black hallway. 'Less than five steps' from top of the stairs, he heard 'suppressed' gunfire: 'BOP. BOP.' The point man had seen a 'man peeking out of the door' on the right side of the hallway.

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Target: A member of Seal Team Six shot and killed Osama bin Laden during the elite squad's daring raid of his compound in Abbotabad, Pakistan

Commando: A photo purported to be of Matt Bissonnette was published by Business Insider on Thursday

The author writes that bin Laden ducked back into his bedroom and the SEALs followed, only to find the terrorist crumpled on the floor in a pool of blood with a hole visible on the right side of his head and two women wailing over his body.

Bissonnette says the point man pulled the two women out of the way and shoved them into a corner and he and the other SEALs trained their guns’ laser sites on bin Laden’s still-twitching body, shooting him several times until he lay motionless.



The SEALs later found two weapons stored by the doorway, untouched, the author said.

Bin Laden as wearing a white t-shirt, loose-fitting tan pants and a tunic.

In the account related by administration officials after the raid in Pakistan, the SEALs shot bin Laden only after he ducked back into the bedroom because they assumed he might be reaching for a weapon.

Tension: The raid of bin Laden's Abottabad compound was watched by President Obama and his closest advisers in the Situation Room of the White House

Watching: In this undated image from video seized from bin Laden's compound, the Al-Qaeda chief watches a TV programme showing an image of President Obama

THE OFFICIAL ACCOUNT OF BIN LADEN'S DEATH IN PAKISTAN It took approximately 15 minutes to find -- and kill -- Osama bin Laden in his Abottabad compound. Involved in the mission in the early morning hours of May 2, 2011 were 79 commandos that arrived in off in military helicopters from Jalalabad, Afghanistan. The first helicopter foundered above Bin Laden’s compound and crash-landed in the outer courtyard. The other helicopter landed outside the house. The SEAL team forced their way into the compound by blowing the door with explosives. The commandos shot three men and a woman -- whom U.S. officials said had lunged at them -- as they went up floor-by floor. On the third level, three of the Navy SEALs saw bin Laden standing at the end of a hallway as they reached the top of the steps. Two women in the room took positions in front of the terror leader to protect him. One of the soldiers grabbed the women and shoved them away while one of the SEALs behind him fired at bin Laden. The al-Qaeda boss was shot once in the chest and once in the head. Code-word ‘Geronimo’ is sounded to White House Situation Room, a signal that their target is dead. The SEALs then photograph the body for identification. On their way out of the compound, the soldiers blow up the broken-down chopper. The teams fly back to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. Bin Laden’s body was then flown to a waiting naval ship, that buried at sea.

White House spokesman Tommy Vietor would not comment on the apparent contradiction late Tuesday. But he said in an email, 'As President Obama said on the night that justice was brought to Osama bin Laden, "We give thanks for the men who carried out this operation, for they exemplify the professionalism, patriotism and unparalleled courage of those who serve our country."'

'No Easy Day' was due out September 11, but Dutton announced the book would be available a week early, September 4, because of a surge of orders due to advance publicity that drove the book to the top of the Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com best-seller lists.

The Associated Press purchased a copy of the book on Tuesday.

The account is sure to again raise questions as to whether the raid was intended to capture or simply to kill bin Laden. Bissonette writes that during a pre-raid briefing, a lawyer from 'either' the White House or Defense Department told them that they were not on an assassination mission. According to Bissonnette, the lawyer said that if bin Laden was 'naked with his hands up,' they should not 'engage' him. If bin Laden did not pose a threat, they should 'detain him.'

In another possibly uncomfortable revelation for U.S. officials who say bin Laden’s body was treated with dignity before being given a full Muslim burial at sea, the author reveals that in the cramped helicopter flight out of the compound, one of the SEALs called 'Walt' -- one of the pseudonyms the author used for his fellow SEALs -- was sitting on bin Laden’s chest as the body lay at the author’s feet in the middle of the cabin, for the short flight to a refueling stop inside Pakistan where a third helicopter was waiting.

This is common practice, as troops sometimes must sit on their own war dead in packed helicopters. Space was cramped because one of the helicopters had crashed in the initial assault, leaving little space for the roughly two dozen commandos in the two aircraft that remained. When the commandos reached the third aircraft, bin Laden’s body was moved to it.

Bissonnette writes disparagingly that none of the SEALs were fans of President Barack Obama and knew that his administration would take credit for ordering the May 2011 raid. One of the SEALs said after the mission that they had just gotten Obama re-elected by carrying out the raid.

But he says they respected him as commander in chief and for giving the operation the go-ahead.

Bissonnette writes less flatteringly of meeting Vice President Joe Biden along with Obama at the headquarters of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment after the raid. He says Biden told 'lame jokes' no one understood, reminding him of 'someone’s drunken uncle at Christmas dinner.'

Terror house: Bin Laden's compound has since been torn down

Mission: Bin Laden was killed during the 40-minute operation by the elite Navy SEAL Team Six in his Abbottabad, Pakistan, compound, seen here

Beyond such embarrassing observations, U.S. officials fear the book may include classified information, as it did not undergo the formal review required by the Pentagon for works published by former or current Defense Department employees.

Officials from the Pentagon and the CIA, which commanded the mission, are examining the manuscript for possible disclosure of classified information and could take legal action against the author.

In a statement provided to The Associated Press, the author says he did 'not disclose confidential or sensitive information that would compromise national security in any way.'

Bissonnette’s real name was first revealed by Fox News and confirmed to The Associated Press.

Jihadists on al-Qaida websites have posted purported photos of the author, calling for his murder.