Wired: No Pictures, It Did Happen: Al-Qaida Admits Osama’s Dead

Wired Magazine's Danger Room brings indirect confirmation of Osama bin Laden's death at the hands of American special forces, courtesy of an announcement by al-Qaeda itself:

No need to release any gruesome snuff photos to prove it. Al-Qaida itself conceded on Friday that the United States killed its founder and leader. And beyond that big, big confirmation, the terrorist group evidently doesn’t have much else to say about the massive questions it faces about its future.

In its first online statement since the Sunday raid, al-Qaida venerates the life of “the mujahid sheikh Osama bin Laden” and pledges to “continue on the path of jihad” in his absence. But it doesn’t make any specific threats of retaliation, beyond vowing generically to wipe the smile off America’s face and turn its “happiness” to “sorrow.” That’s as far as it goes for the terrorist group displaying continued relevance.

And that’s not the only thing the statement neglects. There’s nothing in here about the crucial question of succession. While the acknowledgement of bin Laden’s death clears the deck for a leadership change, the statement is attributable only to the “general leadership” of al-Qaida. That raises the intriguing prospect that al-Qaida hasn’t actually figured out who replaces bin Laden, despite having over a decade to prepare, and having a cellular structure that replaces lower-level operatives. Somewhere in the White House, counterterrorism aide John Brennan, who’s predicted internal chaos within a post-bin Laden al-Qaida, is smiling.

The biggest irony of the statement is that both the U.S. and al-Qaida suspect Pakistan sold them out. Al-Qaida hectors the “handful of traitors and thieves who have sold everything to the enemies of the nation,” and begs its remaining allies in Pakistan to “rise up to wash [away] this shame.”

The article goes on to survey the fallout of the raid and the successful kill for the terrorist grouping. Take a look!