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Hillary Clinton Adds Detail To Situation Room Photo

President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and members of his national security team, receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden in the Situation Room of the White House. A classified document seen in this photograph has been obscured.
Pete Souza
/
White House
President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and members of his national security team, receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden in the Situation Room of the White House. A classified document seen in this photograph has been obscured.

Late in the day Monday, the White House released what has become one of the more iconic pictures marking the killing of Osama bin Laden. The picture shows the president and his national security team in the situation room while they received updates on the operation in Pakistan.

There are lots of serious faces in the photo, but of particular note is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has one hand over her mouth.

ABC reports that Clinton says she can't remember what they were looking at the moment the picture was taken, but there might be a less dramatic explanation for what seems like anguish on her face:

"Those were 38 of the most intense minutes. I have no idea what any of us were looking at that particular millisecond when the picture was taken," Clinton said of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. "I am somewhat sheepishly concerned that it was my preventing one of my early spring allergic coughs. So, it may have no great meaning whatsoever."

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Eyder Peralta
Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.