U.S. approaches bin Laden family for DNA samples

Osama bin Laden

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States has formally approached the bin Laden family and asked them for DNA samples, officials said Wednesday.

The United States wants to rule out definitively that al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was not killed in a recent CIA missile strike in Zawar Kili in Afghanistan.

The armed forces pathology lab is examining human remains from the strike. They are trying to determine the identities of people killed in the missile strike.

One of the people killed in the strike has been described as tall, dressed in Arab white robes, and treated with deference by others, leading to speculation that it could have been bin Laden.

The bin Laden family has not responded to the request, made in the last three or four days. Many of the family members have repudiated Osama bin Laden and there have been indications in the past that some would cooperate.