Israel knew of bin Laden killing prior to Obama announcement

PanARMENIAN.Net - Israeli President Shimon Peres praised the killing of Osama bin Laden, calling it “a great achievement for the U.S. defense establishment, U.S. President Barack Obama and the free world.”

"Bin Laden was one of the biggest murderers in history and he received his sentence," Peres stated. "The world can breathe a sigh of relief at seeing the punishment he received, despite the fact that justice was late in coming," he added.

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman praised the U.S. and Barack Obama for carrying out the successful mission that killed the al Qaida leader.

"I praise the U.S. completing the mission that lasted 11 years. They never gave up, they continued on the hunt for the most dangerous man in the world," the foreign minister said during an interview with Army Radio.

The foreign minister explained that his office was updated moments before Obama made his announcement.

Lieberman said that even though he was based in Afghanistan, bin Laden's death holds great operational significance. "Bin Laden was the spiritual leader of the terror organization but he was also the operational leader behind many terror attacks," he said.

"It is too early to tell exactly what influence bin Laden's death will have but al Qaida is built on a structure that is spread out all over the world, therefore there will be some sort of influence," the foreign minister said.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak praised Obama, the U.S. Defense Secretary and the leaders of the US military apparatus for the assassination of bin Laden.

"This is an important achievement for the U.S. war on global terror," Barak stated. "The US showed perseverance and operational daring on this mission. We have proven once again that the war on terror common to all the leading democracies of the world will be decided through a far-reaching, shared effort that has not come to an end," he said, The Jerusalem Post reported.