U.N. rights boss asks U.S. for facts on bin Laden killing

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay adresses the opening of the 16th session of the Human Rights Council at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva, February 28, 2011.

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations' top human rights official called on the United States on Tuesday to give the U.N. details about Osama bin Laden's killing and said that all counter-terrorism operations must respect international law.

Navi Pillay, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the al Qaeda leader, killed in a U.S. operation in Pakistan on Sunday, was a "very dangerous man" who had claimed "command responsibility for the most appalling acts of terrorism," including the September 11 attacks on America nearly a decade ago.

"This was a complex operation and it would be helpful if we knew the precise facts surrounding his killing. The United Nations has consistently emphasized that all counter-terrorism acts must respect international law," she said in a statement issued in response to a Reuters request.

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Louise Ireland)