--- description: Robert O'Neill says his role in the killing was "a difficult secret to keep" title: Former Navy SEAL Says He Went Public on bin Laden Raid After Meeting 9/11 Families image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8ce156b83b4e204f/698767a3524fc019addea997/robert-oneill.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Military](/tag/military/) ## Military Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Former Navy SEAL Went Public on bin Laden Raid After Meeting 9/11 Families by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 14, 2014 1:39 PM CUT  Robert O'Neill, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, speaks at the "Best of Blount" Chamber of Commerce awards ceremony at the Clayton Center for the Arts in Maryville, Tenn., Nov. 6, 2014. Robert O'Neill, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, speaks at the "Best of Blount" Chamber of Commerce awards ceremony at the Clayton Center for the Arts in Maryville, Tenn., Nov. 6, 2014.Luke Sharrett—Bloomberg/Getty Images by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 14, 2014 1:39 PM CUT The former Navy SEAL who [claims to have fired the shot that killed Osama bin Laden](http://time.com/3565526/navy-seal-osama-bin-laden-robert-oneill/ "undefined") [said Friday](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/former-navy-seal-robert-oneill-talks-to-cbs-news-about-killing-osama-bin-laden/ "undefined") that he was inspired to reveal his secret after meeting with the families of victims from the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. “I think it’s a difficult secret to keep,” Robert O’Neill [said on CBS](http://time.com/3565526/navy-seal-osama-bin-laden-robert-oneill/ "undefined"). All 23 SEALs who participated in the raid in Pakistan in 2011 were sworn to secrecy. O’Neill, in interviews on CBS and NBC, said sharing his story with the families of 9/11 victims, and seeing the closure it gave them, prompted him to come forward. He claims to have shot bin Laden three times in the face. Going public has prompted [criticism](http://time.com/3574990/navy-seals-rober-oneill-osama-bin-laden/ "undefined") from some but he told NBC he’s “prepared” for the backlash. _Read next:_ [_Why Navy SEALs Are Supposed to Keep Their Mouths Shut_](http://time.com/3574990/navy-seals-rober-oneill-osama-bin-laden/?xid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3585442/former-navy-seal-bin-laden/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3585442/former-navy-seal-bin-laden/"},"headline":"Former Navy SEAL Went Public on bin Laden Raid After Meeting 9/11 Families","datePublished":"2014-11-14T13:39:02.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T11:26:39.034Z","description":"Robert O'Neill says his role in the killing was \"a difficult secret to keep\"","url":"https://time.com/3585442/former-navy-seal-bin-laden/","keywords":["Military"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8ce156b83b4e204f/698767a3524fc019addea997/robert-oneill.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah Begley","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8ce156b83b4e204f/698767a3524fc019addea997/robert-oneill.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Former Navy SEAL Rob O'Neill Who Killed Osama bin Laden Speaks At Chamber of Commerce","caption":"Robert O'Neill, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, speaks at the \"Best of Blount\" Chamber of Commerce awards ceremony at the Clayton Center for the Arts in Maryville, Tenn., Nov. 6, 2014.","creditText":"Luke Sharrett—Bloomberg/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/military/","name":"Military"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3585442/former-navy-seal-bin-laden/","name":"Former Navy SEAL Went Public on bin Laden Raid After Meeting 9/11 Families"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"See What You Missed This Week","description":"Here are four of the biggest stories for the second week of November.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/VmCGKpJz/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-11-14T16:05:30.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/VmCGKpJz.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3585442/former-navy-seal-bin-laden/","duration":"PT1M19S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3585442/former-navy-seal-bin-laden/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```