( CNN ) -- As special-operations military troops prepared for a firefight about 7,000 miles away , President Barack Obama entered a room in the Washington area early in the afternoon on Sunday to follow along . Like a page plucked from a Hollywood screenplay , Obama and other principal coordinators for the mission that killed Osama bin Laden convened in a `` situation room '' to remotely monitor the situation , John Brennan , the U.S. counterterrorism chief , said in a White House news briefing on Monday . Obama arrived after many of the mission 's leaders had assembled there , but the president joined before the attack on bin Laden 's mansion in Abbottabad , Pakistan , began , Brennan said . `` We were able to monitor on a real-time basis the progress of the operation , from its commencement , to its time on target , to the extraction of the remains , '' Brennan said . `` We were able to have regular updates to ensure that we had real-time visibility into the progress of the operation . '' The mood in the room was anxious because the stakes were so high , Brennan said . `` There were some very tense moments , '' he said . `` We were just saying our prayers that everything would go according to plan . '' The White House and Central Intelligence Agency did n't have access to a live audio feed , but they were able to tap other communications , a U.S. official told CNN . There was some live video , though the official declined to elaborate on the nature of that footage . The Los Angeles Times reported that the CIA had led the bin Laden attack operation , and officials on the 7th floor of the agency 's Langley , Virginia , headquarters had access to live video of the raid , the report said . Brennan declined to say whether they had access to a video feed or radio communications . A White House spokesman declined to comment . Google , Apple and other Internet companies have mastered the process of streaming live video from events to the world . But that task would get much trickier if the cameramen are also carrying rifles and broadcasting from an untested , faraway locale . After Obama had signed off on the operation , CIA Director Leon Panetta gave the official order around midday Sunday for the operation to commence , the Times reported . `` We have rid the world of the most infamous terrorist of our time , '' Panetta said in a statement Monday . `` We gave President Obama and his team accurate , relevant , timely intelligence -- providing the information and insight they needed at key points as this mission developed . '' The CIA had been tracking bin Laden and provided intelligence to the White House saying the agency was `` confident '' the terrorist leader was inside the Pakistan compound , Brennan said . `` It was probably one of the most anxiety-filled periods of time , I think , in the lives of the people who were assembled here yesterday , '' Brennan said . `` The minutes passed like days , and the president was very concerned about the security of our personnel . That was what was on his mind throughout . '' Shortly after taking office in 2009 , Obama had directed Panetta `` to make the killing or capture of bin Laden the top priority of our war against al Qaeda , '' the president said in his speech Sunday night . `` We give thanks to the countless intelligence and counterterrorism professionals who 've worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome . The American people do not see their work , nor know their names . '' However , Obama apparently does get to see their work as it 's being carried out . CNN 's Pam Benson contributed to this report .
President Obama is said to have watched live video of the attack on Osama bin Laden . The White House 's counterterrorism chief says he monitored the situation with Obama . Comment: