Senate panel says Benghazi attack was preventable

2014-01-15 56

A Senate panel report says the September 11, 2012 attack on a U.S. diplomatic outpost in Benghazi, Libya was preventable.

The attack killed the U.S. ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, and three other U.S. government personnel.

But the State Department says there was no specific evidence to show that militants were preparing an attack.

State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf:

(SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON MARIE HARF, SAYING:

"As we have repeatedly said, there was no specific threat indicating an attack was coming. Obviously we've talked at length about the fact that we knew there were extremists and terrorists operating in Libya, and in Benghazi. But again, we had no specific information indicating a threat - an attack was coming..."

The Senate Intelligence Committee maintains that U.S. intelligence agencies had warned of a deteriorating security situation in eastern Libya in the months before the attac