The Navy hero agreed to be interviewed on a Fox News special next week called 'The Man Who Killed Osama bin Laden. In it he will talk of his training, and detail the mission to take out the al Qaeda leader.
MailOnline
has established that he is Rob O'Neill, a highly-decorated veteran who quit
after 16 years of service. O'Neill's decision to speak out was prompted by
losing some of his military benefits by quitting the SEALs after 16 years
rather than staying for a full 20 years of service. However his decision to
speak is at the center of huge controversy.
In an
exclusive interview Rob's father, Tom O'Neill, tells MailOnline....
He is not
allowed to talk, yet they are using this big bullhorn to shut him up, 'I
support him in everything he is doing,'What are you supposed to do when you
come out of the military after such service — become a greeter at Walmart?'
'People are asking if we are worried that ISIS will come and get us because Rob
is going public. I say I'll paint a big target on my front door and say come
and get us.My ex-wife gave birth to a man. We shouldn't be cowering in fear.'
Rob O'Neill,
38, is a former member of SEAL Team Six who has been portrayed on screen in
Zero Dark Thirty, Captain Phillips and Lone Survivor.He is one of the most
distinguished members ever of the elite force - but now faces being frozen out
of its circles for revealing its most closely-held secrets.
O'Neill was
personally congratulated for killing bin Laden - in his account at close range
with three shots to his forehead - during the SEAL raid on Abbottobad, in
Pakistan, on 2 May 2011.
O'Neill's
father says he cannot understand the fuss.'
For O'Neill,
the threat is a devastating fall from a position as a national — if unknown —
hero.
Although he
had previously been interviewed about the shooting of bin Laden, he remained
entirely discreet about his role. However being an unsung hero was not enough. But
deciding to speak publicly may surprise some. In the Esquire interview his wife
spoke about her concerns over a retaliatory attack.
'Personally I
feel more threatened by a potential retaliatory terror attack on our community
than I did eight years ago,' his wife said in 2013.
At the time
the couple were estranged. Their marital status is now unclear.
'We're
actually looking into changing my name,' his wife.Changing the kids' names,
taking my husband's name off the house, paying off our cars. Essentially
deleting him from our lives but for safety reasons. We still love each other.'
O'Neill also
described how he had instructed his wife in how to protect their children, and
jep a 'blot bag' ready in case they had to flee at any time.
Bin Laden's hideout
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