This photograph of President Barack Obama delivering a statement on the death of Osama bin Laden was taken by Pete Souza on May 1, 2011. President Obama spoke live on television from the East Room late on May 1. Bin Laden was the leader of the terrorist group al Qaeda, who were responsible for the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and Flight 93, which crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. His death was carried out through a military mission led by members of the United States Navy SEALs.

This photograph, taken by Paul Morse, shows President George W. Bush delivering an address to the nation from the Oval Office following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Bush delivered the live televised address that evening. Contributors to the speech included President Bush; speechwriters John McConnell, David Frum, Matthew Scully, and Michael J. Gerson; national security advisor Condoleezza Rice and her deputy assistant Stephen J. Hadley; and members of the White House communications team. In his remarks, Bush mourned the loss of American citizens yet asserted the strength of the nation, promised retribution for the perpetrators of the attacks and their supporters, and offered words of prayer.

In this photograph, Vice President Richard B. Cheney meets with national security advisor Condoleezza Rice, deputy national security advisor Stephen J. Hadley, and other senior national security officials in the Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC) following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. From the secure facility beneath the White House, Vice President Cheney and the team of national security advisors communicated with President George W. Bush to monitor the crisis as it unfolded. President Bush received news of the suspected terrorist attacks while taking part in a reading demonstration at Emma E. Brooker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida, and for the hours that followed worked from his office aboard Air Force One.

In this photograph, President George W. Bush speaks on the telephone as senior staff convene in his office aboard Air Force Once following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York city on September 11, 2001. Bush received news of the suspected terrorist attacks while visiting Emma E. Brooker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida, to take part in a reading demonstration. After delivering brief remarks at the school, Bush boarded Air Force One for his own protection, accompanied by roughly 65 advisors, security agents, and staff members. President Bush worked from his office aboard Air Force One, where he monitored the crisis using the secure phone lines and televisions installed in the aircraft.

This photograph, taken by Eric Draper from aboard Air Force One on September 11, 2001, shows an F-16 Fighting Falcon military jet flying alongside Air Force One to escort the presidential aircraft from Offutt Air Force Base near Bellevue, Nebraska to Andrews Air Force Base near Prince George's County, Maryland. Multiple F-16 fighter jets accompanied Air Force One to protect President George W. Bush following the terrorist attacks on the morning of September 11, 2001. Bush received news of the suspected terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York city while visiting Emma E. Brooker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida, to take part in a reading demonstration. After delivering brief remarks at the school, Bush boarded Air Force One for his own protection, accompanied by roughly 65 advisors, security agents, and staff members. For the hours that followed, President Bush worked from his office aboard Air Force One, where he monitored the crisis using the secure phone lines and televisions installed in the aircraft.