The CIA, or Central Investigation Agency, is known to be one of the most efficient and mysterious secret service organisations in the world today, and that reputation was further enhanced by the raid on a compound in Pakistan’s Abbottabad which led to former Al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden’s death.
Join us beginning at 1:25 p.m. EDT today as we tweet the #UBLRaid as if it were happening today. pic.twitter.com/x8EBpW571f
— CIA (@CIA) May 1, 2016
But even the most enigmatic organisation in the world decided to claim its share of the social media limelight, as they allowed users to relive the night of the operation, by live tweeting the raid as it had happened five years back.
To mark the 5th anniversary of the Usama Bin Ladin operation in Abbottabad we will tweet the raid as if it were happening today.#UBLRaid
— CIA (@CIA) May 1, 2016
The agency put out tweets of developments taking place on the ground as well as the activities in the situation room, where US President Obama was observing the operation with top officials.
The tweets give a complete account of the activities beginning from the approval for the operation that came at 1:25 AM to the death and identification of Osama Bin Laden, three hours later.
1:25 pm EDT-@POTUS, DCIA Panetta, & JSOC commander Admiral McRaven approve execution of op in Abbottabad.#UBLRaid pic.twitter.com/YhvuJVrMVc
— CIA (@CIA) May 1, 2016
1:51 pm EDT – Helicopters depart from Afghanistan for compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan#UBLRaid
— CIA (@CIA) May 1, 2016
3:30 pm EDT – 2 helicopters descend on compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. 1 crashes, but assault continues without delay or injury#UBLRaid
— CIA (@CIA) May 1, 2016
3:30 pm EDT – @POTUS watches situation on ground in Abbottabad live in Situation Room#UBLRaid pic.twitter.com/59KPF7eUTr
— CIA (@CIA) May 1, 2016
3:39 pm EDT – Usama Bin Ladin found on third floor and killed#UBLRaid
— CIA (@CIA) May 1, 2016
While the highly clandestine agency went on to tell all on the social media, users also had mixed reactions to the revelations about one of the most competent and controversial military operations in the past few years.
5 years ago, this series of Tweets from Pakistan unknowingly broadcasted raid that killed Osama Bin Laden #UBLRaid pic.twitter.com/pg85hCXakZ
— Adam Khan (@Khanoisseur) May 1, 2016
Oh wait — does this mean that the CIA will also ‘live tweet’ when anniversaries happen of it bringing down govts in ME & Central America?
— omar r quraishi (@omar_quraishi) May 2, 2016
CIA’s live-tweet of the raid on Abbottabad was crazy, especially the part where they tossed a Bin Laden mannequin in the sea.
— todd levin (@toddlevin) May 2, 2016
A CIA live tweet of creating the crack epidemic
— Matthew Callan (@scratchbomb) May 1, 2016
Shouldn’t the @cia call its anniversary tweeting of the Osama Bin Laden raid a “dead-tweet” instead of a “live-tweet”?
— Jack Shafer (@jackshafer) May 1, 2016
CIA marketing meeting. “I’d like to see our engagement #s go up.” “We can always live tweet Osama’s death from 5yrs ago.””I like it. Do it.”
— HimCee Lyte (@seabethree) May 1, 2016
Although the event remains a landmark in the war on terror and world history, the live tweets do not recreate the breathtaking operation, partly because people know the end result of the raid.
Feature image source: AFP