Bin Laden buried at sea

The burial was conducted aboard aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in the North Arabian Sea, an official said on the conditions of anonymity during a background briefing with media. It took place within 24 hours of the al-Qaida leader's death, he said.

"Preparations for at-sea [burial] began at 1:10 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (0510 GMT) and were completed at 2 a.m. (0600 GMT)," the official said.

"The body was placed in a weighted bag. A military officer read prepared religious remarks, which were translated into Arabic by a native speaker," he added.

Afterward, bin Laden's body was placed onto a flat board, which was then elevated upward on one side and the body slid off into the sea.

CIA and Defense Department officials are sure it was the body of bin Laden. CIA specialists compared photos of the body with known photos of bin Laden and said with 95-percent certainty it was the terrorist leader, a senior intelligence official said.

In addition, the intelligence official said, bin Laden's wife identified him by name while the strike team was still in the compound.

"It was prepared in accordance with the Islamic requirements. We early on made provisions for that type of burial, and we wanted to make sure that it was going to be done, again, in strict conformance," said Brennan. Kazinform cites Xinhua. See www.xinhuanet.com for full version