“The photos, if they ever got released, I don’t know, I think that would help clear some stuff up. I think you’d also see very quickly it’s high forehead shots. His face is not all f***ed up. You can very clearly see his bridge of his nose, whole face, mouth, mouth structure. Easily identifiable. The idea that there were extra shots or any of this that his face was distorted. Release the photos. High forehead shots,” Matt Bissonnette told podcaster Andy Stumpf in a recent interview.
Matt Bissonnette’s account
In a wide-ranging conversation on the Andy Stumpf podcast, Bissonnette — a former DEVGRU operator who served during the period that includes the 2011 Abbottabad raid — revisited how the team entered the compound and what he says the visual record would show about Osama bin Laden’s body. He framed the operation as deliberate and controlled, arguing that some media portrayals emphasizing graphic injury or chaotic movement do not match his recollection.
He said he will expand on those memories in a forthcoming book titled No Easy Way, and that the interview reflects how he now interprets events years later. Throughout the interview Bissonnette repeatedly noted these are his recollections rather than official, declassified findings.
What Bissonnette says about the shooting and photos
Bissonnette described the fatal shots as aimed high on the forehead and said that, in his view, bin Laden’s facial features would remain identifiable in any photographs taken at the scene. He pushed back against accounts that the body was so disfigured as to be unrecognizable, saying the bridge of the nose, mouth and general facial structure were visible.
He called for release of any photos that exist as a way to resolve conflicting narratives, while acknowledging that he does not control classification decisions. He also emphasized that his description depends on photos that have not been made public and on memory shaped by time and subsequent reflection.
Tactical timeline of the raid
Across the interview Bissonnette offered a compact tactical timeline emphasizing procedure over spectacle. He stressed standard precautions and sequential clearing methods rather than dramatizing running gunfire or disorder.
- Insertion: Elements of SEAL Team 6 were transported into Pakistan aboard aircraft from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (160th SOAR), the specialized Army aviation unit that routinely supports special operations missions.
- Approach and entry: The assault team moved through the compound in planned phases, checking rooms and high-risk choke points while searching for threats such as booby traps or suicide vests.
- Pointman contact: Bissonnette described a pointman — an unnamed operator he referred to by the call sign Red — who engaged a target after bin Laden briefly appeared at a doorway. Bissonnette presents Red’s actions as part of the unit’s immediate force-protection response rather than an isolated, unauthorized act.
- Clearing and conclusion: The team continued clearing toward the upstairs bedroom where Bissonnette says the engagement concluded with bin Laden killed; he stresses this as his recollection of sequence and priority, not an official after-action reconstruction.
He repeatedly underlined that the team’s movement was cautious and methodical, reflecting training and concern for secondary threats. That description is intended to contrast with depictions that stress panic or uncontrolled bursts of fire.
Unverified claims and limits
Important limits apply: much of what Bissonnette described represents his personal recollection and interpretation. Key items remain unverified in the public record. Specifically:
- The identity of the pointman called Red has not been publicly confirmed. Bissonnette refers to the operator by that call sign in his account, but the name and identifying details of that individual have not been corroborated through official releases or independent records.
- Photos Bissonnette references — which he says would show identifiable facial features and “high forehead shots” — have not been released for public inspection and therefore cannot confirm or refute his description.
- Precise shot sequence, angles and exact timing are described as memory-based recollections and are not presented by Bissonnette as declassified, independently verified facts.
Because those materials remain classified or unpublished, reporters and readers should treat Bissonnette’s claims as first-person testimony. They may be accurate; they are not, at present, independently verifiable from public documents or imagery.
Background: Bissonnette and No Easy Way
Matt Bissonnette is a former Navy SEAL and DEVGRU operator whose service has been referenced in prior reporting about special operations around the period of the Abbottabad raid. He is publicly identified as the author of a forthcoming memoir, No Easy Way, which he says will provide additional context and detail about missions and his perspective on the raid. The book and the podcast interview are the primary venues through which he is now sharing recollections and analysis.
Why this account matters
Bissonnette’s account matters because it comes from an eyewitness who served in the unit and because it directly challenges elements of the public narrative. If photographs or other primary materials are released and align with his description, they could alter how historians, journalists and the public assess the final moments of the raid.
At the same time, alternative perspectives exist: previous official briefings and reporting have drawn on multiple interviews, intelligence summaries and contemporaneous statements that reached different emphases about the engagement and condition of the body. Bissonnette’s testimony adds to a contested record rather than resolving it. Moving the public record forward would require either declassification of primary materials or corroborating testimony from other participants or official documents.
Key takeaways
– Matt Bissonnette, speaking on the Andy Stumpf podcast, says photos would show Osama bin Laden’s face was identifiable and that fatal shots were to the high forehead.
– He describes the raid as slow, methodical and focused on force protection rather than chaotic movement.
– Several central claims — including the pointman’s identity and the condition of the body as depicted in photos — remain unverified and are presented by Bissonnette as personal recollection.
Frequently asked questions
Did Bissonnette say bin Laden’s face was intact?
Bissonnette said released photos, if made public, would show bin Laden’s face was identifiable and that the fatal shots were to the high forehead. This is his claim based on memory and material he says exists; the photos are not publicly available for independent review.
Who is the unnamed pointman called Red?
Bissonnette described a pointman referred to as Red who fired when bin Laden appeared at a doorway. The operator’s identity has not been publicly confirmed and remains unverified in the open record.
Will the photos Bissonnette mentions be released?
Bissonnette urged their release, but whether any images will be declassified or published is beyond his control and has not been announced. Until such materials are released, claims about their content remain unverified.
Sources: Interview on the Andy Stumpf podcast (Bissonnette remarks); Fox News — Former DEVGRU operator Matt Bissonnette sheds new light on how the bin Laden raid actually unfolded
