Nearly a decade after the Sept. 11 attacks that killed more than 3,000 people on American soil, President Barack Obama announced to the nation the plot's mastermind, Osama bin Laden, was killed in a firefight following a helicopter raid in Pakistan Sunday.
In his address, Obama said he authorized the attack last week based on a lead his administration received in August about bin Laden's whereabouts in Pakistan.
""The death of bin Laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our fight against al-Qaeda, but his death does not mark the end of our effort,"" Obama said.
Obama also assured the American public and the world that the U.S. ""is not, and never will be at war with Islam.""
UW-Madison political science professor Charles Franklin and history professor Jeremi Suri appeared on WISC-TV to discuss the news of bin Laden's death.
Bin Laden was killed in Abbottabad, Pakistan, a town Suri said is located 150 kilometers country's capital Islamabad and home to many international aid organizations.
""In some ways, bin Laden was hiding in plain sight,"" Suri said.
Suri said although bin Laden's death could spur some retaliation by al-Qaeda and affiliated terrorist organizations, Obama's success will put them on edge.
""If I'm [Libyan ruler] Muammar al-Qaddafi, I'm really worried right now,"" Suri said.
Franklin said the elimination of bin Laden marks a long awaited success for the U.S. government. He said Obama, who has been faltering in recent polls, could see a bump in public approval.
Students across the UW-Madison campus were shocked by bin Laden's long-anticipated death. But many were in agreement that the news was, as freshman Albert Gnadt put it, ""pretty sweet.""
Though he celebrated bin Laden's defeat, Obama acknowledged the sacrifices Americans made along the way.
""The American people did not choose this fight, it came to our shores, and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens,"" Obama told the nation. ""After nearly 10 years of selfless service and sacrifice, we know the cost of war.""
This article has been changed from its original version to reflect an updated description of the raid on bin Laden's compound and to provide the correct location of Abottabad.
