Bulgaria's Socialist President Georgi Parvanov has praised US President Obama for taking the "justified" decision to capture al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

"The news of the successful operation against the leader of the terrorist network Al Qaeda was greeted by the global democratic community with a sense of triumph of justice. The removal of Osama bin Laden responsible for the deaths of thousands of innocent people, marks an important milestone in our common fight against international terrorism. This is a justified act and convincing evidence of the determination of democratic states to defend freedom and human values ??against the forces of extremism, violence and terror based on a wrong interpretation of religion," reads the letter of the President of Bulgaria.

"The fight against all forms and manifestations of terrorism should continue with a united international effort. I would like to assure you that the Republic of Bulgaria will continue to be strongly and consistently engaged in these efforts and together with its allies will contribute to achieving this goal, including through its participation in the process of rebuilding Afghanistan," says the letter.

Bin Laden, 54, was the founder and leader of al-Qaeda. He is believed to have ordered the attacks on New York and Washington on 11 September 2001, as well as a number of other deadly bombings.

Bin Laden, his son Khalid, trusted personal courier Sheikh Abu Ahmed and the courier's brother were all killed, along with an unidentified woman.

Bin Laden was shot above his left eye, blowing away a section of his skull, and was also shot in the chest.