BIN LADEN IS DEAD

Osama bin Laden -- the most wanted man in U.S. history and mastermind behind the 9/11 terrorist attacks -- was confirmed to be killed Sunday night by U.S. ground forces in Pakistan.

President Barack Obama addressed the nation Sunday night and said bin Laden had been killed after an attack was carried out by American grounds troops on al Qaeda forces where bin Laden was known to be hiding. Bin Laden's body was located and was identified as the al Qaeda leader.

Senior political science major Hunter Benson believes the death will help troops fighting overseas. "I thought it was a good thing for the U.S. It was definitely a moral booster," Benson said. "It probably won't have a huge effect on the the war on terror as a whole, but it probably was a big blow to al Qaeda."

Reports have surfaced that bin Laden's body was buried at sea after DNA testing confirmed his identity. Sources have said that bin Laden was shot in the side of the head and that his body was unrecognizable in photographs taken soon after the attack.

President Obama confrimed the death and procliamed that justice had been served.

"Tonight I can report to the American people and the world..that Osama bin Laden has been killed," Obama said in a televised address to the nation. Obama said he was made aware of bin Laden's location in mid-August, and said after months of intelligence, he authorized an attack on bin Laden's compound.

"On nights like this one..justice has been done," Obama added. The President spoke for about 10 minutes from the East Room of the White House starting around 11:30 p.m.     

Obama announced that officals had been keeping an eye on bin Laden's location in Pakistan and waited until they thought they could get him with minimal casualties. No U.S. soldier was harmed in the attack

Obama ordered the strike in which U.S. was aided by Pakistan soldiers on the mansion where bin Laden was hiding. Photos of the body have been taken, but officials have yet to determine if they will make them public.  

Within minutes of the news being made public people began to show up at the White House and at Ground Zero in New York. Hoards of people shouted "USA! USA! USA!" while others sang the national anthem. A few simply cried in joy.

Social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook were one of the first outlets to report the news of bin Laden's death. Within minutes of the initial report, hundreds of messages, videos and comments were posted regarding the breaking news.