Gillibrand: Osama bin Laden's death a "moment of justice" for New Yorkers

Democratic New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand called the death of Osama bin Laden a "moment of triumph" for New Yorkers, but warned residents of the city to stay "vigilant" against possible threats in the aftermath of the historic event.

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In an interview with CBS' "Early Show," Gillibrand called the news of bin Laden's death "a moment of justice" for her state's residents and credited President Obama with "dedication" and "resolve" in pursuing the al Qaeda leader and carrying out the operation that killed him on Sunday.

"He has never given up on this issue," Gillibrand told CBS' Chris Wragge, noting that she felt "just extraordinary joy" when she heard on Sunday that bin Laden had been killed. "President Obama has made sure this was a priority for our intelligence services, for our military, and this operation I think made a huge difference."

"So many people lost loved ones on 9/11. And this is an opportunity for them to celebrate a victory against terrorism, against those who perpetrated the attacks on the people they love," Gillibrand said. "I was just watching some of the clips from people who were at Ground Zero last night when the news broke, and they said, we will never forget 9/11 - but we will also never forget May 1st. And so it's a moment of triumph and I think it's very important for New Yorkers."

President Obama announced bin Laden's death in a surprise press conference late Sunday night, following a Sunday military operation that resulted in the al Qaeda leader's death in a compound outside Islamabad, Pakistan. In his remarks, the president noted that while "The death of bin Laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our nation's effort to defeat al Qaeda...his death does not mark the end of our effort. "

"There's no doubt that al Qaeda will continue to pursue attacks against us," Mr. Obama said. "We must -- and we will -- remain vigilant at home and abroad."

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Gillibrand urged New Yorkers to note possible security risks in the city in the wake of the news.

"As we know from the news reports, [New York Police Department] Commissioner Kelly has made judgments about the increased risk that the city will face," she said. "You have to recognize, since 9/11 there's been 12 terror attempts. And because of our extraordinary police force, our FBI and all of those who focus on national security, we've been able to thwart those attempts. And so he wants to make sure everyone stays vigilant."

"People need to be on alert, and law enforcement are making the adjustments that they feel are necessary," she added.

Amid questions over what Pakistan may or may not have known regarding bin Laden's location, Gillibrand discussed the U.S.'s relationship with the country.

"The reality is is that we have had a very push me-pull me relationship with Pakistan for a long time," Gillibrand told Wragge. "We have invested billions of dollars in that country but when we ask them to run certain operations, we don't always get the answer that we want."

"I think this operation - and President Obama said, it was just a few miles in one of the suburbs, outside of Islamabad," she added. "Our intelligence services were able to see it because this compound had very high walls, very large for the area, and they were able to know that this was probably where he was hiding."