People only just realising how Bin Laden was caught and it’s leaving them stunned

Netflix subscribers are praising an ‘intense’ new docuseries on Osama bin Laden, advising crime fans it’s their ‘patriotic duty’ to learn ‘how much precision’ was needed to complete the epic manhunt.

On May 2, 2011, Osama bin Laden - a Saudi-born militant-terrorist leader who founded and served as the first general emir of al-Qaeda - was fatally shot by SEAL Team Six in Pakistan.

The man, who managed to evade capture for roughly nine years after the September 11th attacks in 2001, New York, is thought to have hidden at his Abbottabad-based compound, known locally as the Waziristan Haveli, for six years.

A new Netflix documentary, American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden, chronicles how the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and other military officials undertook the task of finding and eventually killing Osama bin Laden.

You can watch the trailer below:

The three-episode show, directed by Mor Loushy and Daniel Sivan, was distributed via Netflix on May 14, 2025.

Speaking about American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden, the directors told Netflix Tudum: “Our goal was to transport the viewers into these places, in real time, and ask them: ‘What would you do?’

“For us, the best way to understand history is to truly experience it.”

The TV programme, described as ‘telling the story of people tasked to find the world’s most wanted terrorist and bring him to justice’, features interviews with significant intelligence operatives and Special Forces who took part in the global pursuit of bin Laden.

These include journalists John Miller and Nayyera Haq, White House officials like Ben Rhodes and former CIA, Department of Defence, and FBI officials.

American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden is now streaming on Netflix (Netflix)

After learning about Operation Neptune, where a group of 25 Navy Seals raided bin Laden’s complex and eventually killed the terrorist with a gunshot wound to the head, viewers have taken to social media to have their say.

“American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden on Netflix. Go watch it now. Go. Worth it. Super fascinating interviews with people directly involved in the hunt,” commented one user of X, formerly known as Twitter.

They followed up their sentiment with another comment, which read: “I’ll go so far as to say every American should watch it as their patriotic duty.”

A second typed: “This is such an intense documentary on Netflix. America had to go through a lot to get to Osama Bin Laden, and every task performed by the CIA and troops will question you how much precision was needed to complete the mission.”

Osama bin Laden was killed in the early hours of May 2, 2011, after evading US operatives for almost a decade (Netflix)

“American Manhunt: Osama Bin Laden on Netflix is an absolute must watch. Top tier content,” replied someone else.

Another wrote: Just watched The American Manhunt: Osama Bin Laden. Probably one of the best docu-series I’ve seen in a while.

“Goes to show why an uncompromising stance towards terrorism is crucial. I had to pause so many times through the documentary to gather my thoughts. Unmissable!”

All three episodes of American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden are available to stream on Netflix now.