Fifteen years ago today, on May 2, 2011, a team of United States Navy SEALs stormed into a seemingly ordinary compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan and shot dead Osama bin Laden, the founder of al-Qaeda. Operation Neptune Spear lasted for under 40 minutes, but brought to an end a decade-long manhunt for the world’s most wanted terrorist, and the mastermind of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Centre, the Pentagon, and beyond. As the world marks the 15th anniversary of the raid, the operation remains a landmark moment in modern military history. Analysts have noted that it demonstrated the United States’ capacity to project power with precision and to integrate intelligence and special operations at the highest level. However, the questions it raised about sovereignty, US-Pakistan relations, and the long-term trajectory of the war on terror continue to resonate today. We recall. Who was Osama bin Laden to the US?…