How Bin Laden Escaped in 2001—The lessons of Tora Bora

Tora Bora

In 2001, a small U.S. special operations force had won extraordinary victories in Afghanistan and closed in on Bin Laden before high-level blunders allowed him to escape into Pakistan.

Published Dec. 15 2013 6:45AM EST

articles/2013/12/15/how-bin-laden-escaped-in-2001-the-lessons-of-tora-bora/131213-binladen-escape-tease_bjtuck — Alain Buu/Gamma/Getty

This week marks the most important anniversary in the global war against al Qaeda that no one remembers.

articles/2013/12/15/how-bin-laden-escaped-in-2001-the-lessons-of-tora-bora/131213-binladen-escape-tease_j4uq3s

Exactly twelve years ago, during the cold Winter days between December 10-16, in the jagged mountains of Tora Bora that separate Afghanistan from Pakistan, Osama bin Laden walked unencumbered into Pakistan and disappeared...

Yaniv Barzilai

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How Bin Laden Escaped in 2001—The lessons of Tora Bora

In 2001, a small U.S. special operations force had won extraordinary victories in Afghanistan and closed in on Bin Laden before high-level blunders allowed him to escape into Pakistan.

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Yaniv Barzilai