The White House says Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was unarmed at the time U.S. commandos raided his hideout and killed him on Sunday.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said during a news briefing on Tuesday that bin Laden was not armed when U.S. commandos found him, dismissing some claims made by U.S. government officials that bin Laden resisted while being armed during the U.S. military operation.

Carney said that U.S. commandos killed three people on the first floor of the Al-Qaeda leader’s hideout, including one woman. The commandos then later moved to the second floor to find bin Laden. Carney then said that there had been a "volatile firefight" and that bin Laden was shot and killed.