Who shot bin Laden? Former US Navy Seals make rival claims Mr O'Neill's identity had previously been known to many in the US military and in Congress, where politicians had taken to congratulating him in private on his endeavours. His name was also known to various journalists prior to this week. According to Mr O'Neill's version of events, first published anonymously in an Esquire interview, he was the second Seal to climb the stairs approaching bin Laden's bedroom. The "point man," or first Seal to ascend, had fired at bin Laden when he had appeared in the doorway, but missed. The point man had then tackled two women who appeared in the hallway outside the bedroom, creating the opporunity for Mr O'Neill to roll through the doorway and fire the fatal shots. Mr O'Neill told The Post that it was clear that two shots he had fired at bin Laden's head had killed the al-Qaeda leader instantly, his skull split by the first bullet. "I watched him take his last breaths," he said. Matt Bissonnette Matt Bissonnette, another member of the Seal team, published his account of the raid, "No Easy Day," in 2012 under the pseudonym Mark Owen. The book did not identify the person who shot bin Laden. But last night Mr Bissonnette appeared to take issue with Mr O'Neill's version of events in an interview with NBC News. "Two different people telling two different stories for two different reasons," Mr Bissonnette said. Whatever he says, he says. I don't want to touch that. In the anonymous Esquire interview from 2013, Mr O'Neill makes no mention of Mr Bissonnette shooting bin Laden. But when speaking to the Washington Post, Mr O'Neill said that other shots were fired at bin Laden by at least two other Seal Team Six team members, including Matt Bissonnette. Other shooters The fatal shot was fired by one of two other men who entered the room before Mr O'Neill, according to a "source close to another Seal team member," speaking on condition of anonymity to Reuters. Separately, it is "not in dispute," according to Esquire's interview with Mr O'Neill, that "others have claimed that they shot bin Laden when he was already dead, and a number of team members apparently did just that." While this could potentially have lead to confusion over who had fired the fatal bullet, there have also been suggestions of dishonesty. A Seal source reportedly told MailOnline: 'The real shooter would never discuss it publicly. 'Members of Seal Team Six haven't discussed it publicly so there's a reasonable chance he's not being truthful.