NBC News: ‘Pakistanis Knew Where Bin Laden Was, Say US Sources’

NBC News has a new report backing a significant part of Seymour Hersh’s blockbuster story:

Two intelligence sources tell NBC News that the year before the U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden, a “walk in” asset from Pakistani intelligence told the CIA where the most wanted man in the world was hiding - and these two sources plus a third say that the Pakistani government knew where bin Laden was hiding all along. […]

The NBC News sources who confirm that a Pakistani intelligence official became a “walk in” asset include the special operations officer and a CIA officer who had served in Pakistan. These two sources and a third source, a very senior former U.S. intelligence official, also say that elements of the ISI were aware of bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad. The former official was emphatic about the ISI’s awareness, saying twice, “They knew.”

See Also: The Intercept points to R.J. Hillhouse, who posted this report back in August 2011 on her website, The Spy Who Billed Me. Her story, seemingly from different sources than Hersh’s, is largely in line with his report.

Update: NBC has retracted their original report. The story now claims:

While the Pakistani intelligence asset provided vital information in the hunt for bin Laden, he did not provide the location of the al Qaeda leader’s Abottabad, Pakistan compound, sources said.

Three sources also said that some officials in the Pakistani government knew where bin Laden was hiding all along.

★ Monday, 11 May 2015