Local residents gather around Osama bin Laden’s hideout in Abbottabad on May 3, 2011, after the al Qaida leader was killed in a US Navy SEAL operation. (AFP)

Islamabad, Feb. 25 (Agencies): The Abbottabad compound where Osama bin Laden was killed by US Navy SEALs last year was demolished by Pakistani authorities tonight, local residents said.

Three mechanised backhoes began their demolition of the compound in the northwest city of Abbottabad after sunset today, said two local residents, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were afraid of being harassed by the government.

Authorities set up floodlights so they could work after dark, said the residents.

The demolition team conducted its work under heavy security. A large team of police set up an outer cordon around the compound to keep spectators away, said an AP reporter who managed to get close enough to see the demolition work under way. A ring of army soldiers set up an inner cordon and warmed themselves against the winter chill by lighting a bonfire.

The backhoes broke through tall outer boundary walls that ringed a courtyard where one of the US helicopters crashed during the operation to kill the al Qaida chief, said the AP reporter. They then began to tear down the compound itself.

A Pakistani intelligence official confirmed that the demolition was in progress but declined to say why the government chose to do it.