Thaindian News

Islamabad, May 10 (IANS) One of Osama bin Laden’s sons went missing after the raid by US commandos on the al Qaeda leader’s hideout in Pakistan’s Abbottabad town, a media report said Tuesday.

Osama’s three wives who are in custody said that one of his sons has not been seen since the May 2 raid, the ABC News quoted Pakistani officials as saying.

The son has not been identified, but Pakistani investigators agreed that it appeared someone was missing from the sprawling compound, it said.

US officials said that one of Osama’s sons, Khalid, was killed in the raid. It is not known if another son, Hamza, was in the compound at the time of the raid, though his mother is reportedly one of the wives in custody.

The US has denied its special forces took anyone from the compound other than Osama’s body.

The US initially faced resistance from Pakistani authorities when investigators asked for access to Osama’s widows, but a US official said Monday Pakistani officials promised to make the meeting happen sometime soon.

One senior Pakistani security official told ABC News there is still no timeframe for that meeting, however.

Osama, who was married five times, is survived by at least 18 children. None of the sons, however, are in line to succeed their father for leadership of al Qaeda, ABC News reported.

“Unlike a lot of Arab governments that are dynastic,” said former White House counter-terrorism advisor Richard Clarke, now an ABC News consultant. “Al Qaeda has not been and his sons have never played a real operational role of any significance. They did not appear to be groomed for leadership roles in al Qaeda.”