DID Press: A former CIA officer has revealed new details about how Osama bin Laden allegedly escaped from U.S. forces during the Tora Bora operation in Afghanistan, claiming al Qaeda leader fled disguised in women’s clothing with the help of an infiltrated translator.
John Kiriakou, a former CIA counterterrorism officer in Pakistan, told media outlets that U.S. forces believed bin Laden and senior al Qaeda leaders were surrounded, but a translator loyal to al Qaeda managed to gain the trust of American commanders.
According to Kiriakou, bin Laden, through the translator, requested a delay until dawn to evacuate women and children before surrendering. General Tommy Franks reportedly agreed, but by morning the Tora Bora caves were empty and bin Laden had vanished.
Kiriakou said bin Laden escaped in darkness, dressed as a woman and traveling in a small truck into Pakistan, where he lived in hiding for nearly a decade until being killed in Abbottabad in 2011.
The former officer also noted that Washington’s close cooperation with then–Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf had eased U.S. operations in the region but may have inadvertently enabled bin Laden’s escape.