Alternate lede:
After a decade of tracking 9/11 mastermind and financier Osama bin Laden, the CIA has disbanded and dispersed the staff of the unit, known as Alec Station, without ever bringing their quarry to justice. Al Queda, the group led and financed by bin Laden, was implicated in the attack on the USS Cole in 2000 that killed 17 US sailors.
Despite expanding its ranks in the wake of 9/11, the unit was never able to catch bin Laden who continues to inspire his followers with audio and video recordings broadcast throughout the Middle East, despite vows by President Bush to capture him “dead or alive.”
And the wingnuts think the Times is too hard on their leader.
C.I.A. Closes Unit Focused on Capture of bin Laden – New York Times:
C.I.A. Closes Unit Focused on Capture of bin Laden
By MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, July 3 — The Central Intelligence Agency has closed a unit that for a decade had the mission of hunting Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenants, intelligence officials confirmed Monday.The unit, known as Alec Station, was disbanded late last year and its analysts reassigned within the C.I.A. Counterterrorist Center, the officials said.
The decision is a milestone for the agency, which formed the unit before Osama bin Laden became a household name and bolstered its ranks after the Sept. 11 attacks, when President Bush pledged to bring Mr. bin Laden to justice “dead or alive.”