Osama bin Laden had been 'hiding in plain sight'

Peter Bergen met bin Laden in 1997 and believes that al Qaeda will perhaps be irrecoverably damaged by the death of bin Laden.
"There's no one who can replace him. When you join al Qaeda you pledge a personal oath of allegiance (to him)

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/05/02/bin.laden.death.pakistan/index.html