The charges against Osama Bin Laden, the former Al-Qaeda leader, were formally dropped by the United States, who was killed in a U.S. Military raid in Pakistan last month.

On Friday, the federal court in Manhattan disposed of a 1998 indictment that charged bin Laden with murder and conspiracy to kill Americans for his role in attacking U.S. embassies in East Africa. The indictment also alleged that bin Laden tried to attack U.S. defense assets. Further, the bombing of U.S. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania took the lives of 224 people.

Preet Baharara, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, request for a change was granted by Judge Lewis Kaplan in a brief order.

The action came after a thorough analysis that Bin Laden did die after the Navy SEALs raided his compound and the possibility of it not being him is 1 in 11.8 quadrillion.

On June 8, 1998 an original indictment against Bin Laden was filed secretly for murder and conspiracy. Typically after the death of the defendant, such requests to drop charges are procedural and routinely.

The other pending indictments against other top al Qaeda officials and their officials remain. It also includes open charges against Ayman al-Zawahari, who was reported this week to have succeeded bin Laden as leader of al-Qaeda.

Other pending criminal indictments against bin Laden will be amended including his self-admitted role in terrorist attacks of September 11^th, 2001.

Report by Sumit