"It’s hard to ever call something a complete success when you have a loss of life or people injured," Spicer said. "But, I think when you look at the totality of what was gained to prevent the future loss of life here in America and against our people and our institutions, and probably throughout the world, in terms of what some of these individuals could have done, I think it is a successful operation by all standards."
Spicer also noted that the operation was a ‘’very well-thought out and executed effort."
The raid was the first such operation authorized by President Donald Trump.
The US media reported earlier that Nawar al-Awlaki, an 8-year-old daughter of previously assassinated al-Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki, was killed during Sunday’s raid. The girl was a US citizen, according to media reports.
The US Central Command acknowledged in a press release on Wednesday that civilians, including children, may have been killed during the operation.
