Bin Laden’s sea burial to prevent creation of shrine at gravesite

US officials say Osama Bin Laden's body was treated with respect and buried at sea, but some Muslims argue there was no good reason for not burying it on land.

Islamic tradition required the dead to be buried as soon as possible, unless an autopsy is required.

The US military took this requirement very seriously, burying the body within hours.

US officials say religious rites were carried out on the deck of a US aircraft carrier, the USS Carl Vinson.

The body, shrouded in a white sheet and placed in a weighted bag, was then placed on a flat board, tipped up, and eased into the Arabian Sea.

This occurred 12 hours after the firefight during which Osama Bin Laden was shot in the head.

After this first shot, he was shot again, to make sure that he was dead.

The body was then flown to Afghanistan and Bin Laden's identity was confirmed.

Officials say a DNA sample was taken that matched that of several other family members.

Some sources say facial recognition technology was also used.

US officials have given two reasons why a sea burial was chosen.

First, that they did not want his grave to become a shrine.

Second, that there was no time to negotiate with other countries to arrange a possible burial on land.

According to CBS News, Saudi Arabia refused to take the body.

If correct, this suggests that an offer was made   and that had Saudi Arabia accepted the body, there would have been a grave, which could in theory have become a shrine.


Story by: Vijay Narayan