Briefing by Senior Administration Officials to Update Recent Events in Libya

U.S. State Department ^ | 9/12/2012 | U.S. State Department

[Dave Mellon]

Today marks the two week anniversary of the 9 11 12 terrorist attack on the U.S. Consulate compound in Benghazi, Libya. We should pause and take a look back at what our news media was officially told by the U.S. State Department less than 24 hours after the event.

I am including a preliminary timeline that I gleaned from the briefing followed two questions asked by reporters about the alleged protests. The answers clearly show that the “movie trailer” protest storyline had not been adopted by the Obama Administration and that no one at the State Department could address the alleged protests whatsoever!

The question of why the news media was *asking* about alleged Benghazi protests should be the central question they are asked today. Two weeks after four Americans were killed, the news media has yet to demonstrate through any standard journalistic technique that the “movie trailer” protests in Benghazi were ever anything more than a fantasy of their own creation—one which the Obama Administration seized upon and adopted as its own.

All times are local Benghazi time:

BEGIN PRELIMINARY TIMELINE

10:00 PM (approximately): “…the compound where our office is in Benghazi began taking fire from unidentified Libyan extremists.”

10:15 PM (approximately): “The attackers gained access to the compound and began firing into the main building, setting it on fire. The Libyan guard force and our mission security personnel responded. At that time, there were three people inside the building: Ambassador Stevens, one of our regional security officers, and Information Management Officer Sean Smith. They became separated from each other due to the heavy, dark smoke while they were trying to evacuate the burning building. The Regional Security Officer made it outside, and then he and other security personnel returned into the burning building in an attempt to rescue Chris and Sean. At that time, they found Sean. He was already dead, and they pulled him from the building. They were unable, however, to locate Chris before they were driven from the building due to the heavy fire and smoke and the continuing small arms fire.”

10:45 PM (approximately): “U.S. security personnel assigned to the mission annex tried to regain the main building, but that group also took heavy fire and had to return to the mission annex.”

11:20 PM (approximately): “U.S. and Libyan security personnel made another attempt and at that time were able to regain the main building and they were able to secure it. Then, due to continued small arms fire, they evacuated the rest of the personnel and safe havened them in the nearby annex.”

12:00 AM (approximately): “The mission annex then came under fire… …and that continued for about two hours. It was during that time that two additional U.S. personnel were killed and two more were wounded during that ongoing attack.”

2:30 AM (approximately): “Libyan security forces were able to assist us in regaining control of the situation. At some point in all of this – and frankly, we do not know when – we believe that Ambassador Stevens got out of the building and was taken to a hospital in Benghazi. We do not have any information what his condition was at that time. His body was later returned to U.S. personnel at the Benghazi airport.”

END PRELIMINARY TIMELINE

PROTEST QUESTIONS:

OPERATOR: “Josh Rogin with Foreign Policy is next. Please go ahead.”

QUESTION: “Thank you very much. …you didn’t talk at all about the protests. You started your timeline with that the firing began. Can you talk about the timeline of when the protests started, how that fit in with it, and your sense of whether or not the protestors and the assailants were the same?”

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: “Okay. We frankly don’t have a full picture of what may have been going on outside of the compound walls before the firing began. So I really just don’t have any specifics on that at the moment. I apologize.”

OPERATOR: “Jim Michaels with USA Today. Please go ahead, sir.”

QUESTION: “Yeah, thanks for taking our calls. I just wanted to go back to an earlier question. Was – can you describe a little bit about the level of organization of this assault and how it was or was not related to an overall protest/riot occurring about the same time?”

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: “I wish I could. Frankly, I’ve given you as much information as we are confident in at the moment. We will obviously know more in coming days and weeks as we secure our personnel, as we have a chance to talk to them, as we have a chance to interview Libyans who may have been witnesses. But frankly, that’s as much as I’ve got at the moment. I’m sorry to frustrate you.”

MY COMMENTS: Where is any news media or amateur video of the “movie trailer” protests? As the news media continued to report the Obama Administration’s position that the evidence pointed to a peaceful protest which was joined by the terrorists at some point, why did they—the news media fail to point out that all available video showed that there was no evidence of a “movie trailer” protest? All the news media had to do was show the terrorist attack videos over and over again followed by the looting videos—all the while chanting “Show us your evidence Mr. President.”

Other related articles I have posted on FR:

9/20/2012:

9/19/2012:

9/17/2012:

[rxtn41]

Oops, at 11:30 pm the won went to bed....I didn’t mean to leave out this important event...

[Elendur]

and on top of all the other lies...
like about the non-existent protest...
in addition, the video was NOT made by a Coptic Christian.
-
“Nakoula was lying again and is no Coptic author.
His cellmate, who testified that Nakoula was always reviewing the Quran, does not exclude the possibly that he is a Muslim who was reading his Quran and meditating on it.”
-
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2936047/posts

[American Constitutionalist]

Anyone from the Romney campaign ?

Romney needs to say " In this dangerous world and world instability, why on Earth would Obama and his people consider the " Defense Budget " as a deficit that needs to be cut ? "

[Gaffer]

Why does anyone expect to get the truth from this government? This is just all Kabuki theater that allows the MSM to collect a few sound bites they can cut up, rearrange and use for the evening news to placate their loyal, stupid base.

[Bon mots]

Obama/Clinton ignored a warning from the Libyans three days in advance of trouble brewing...
Obama/Clinton ignored the fact that the British embassy was attacked a few days earlier...
Obama/Clinton ignored the pleas of the ambassador who was VERY concerned about the lackadaisical security, absence of armed guards, his presence on an al Qaida hit list, etc.
Obama was told that a major attack had begun on our embassy in Libya and chose not to go to the situation room to handle the conflagration, but ignored the news and went to bed.
Obama/Clinton sent the ambassador to a war zone without armed guards.
Obama/Clinton sent him without a marine contingent

The complicit press does not blame Obama/Clinton but proclaimed the blame in this order:
A film's fault...
The CIA's fault
Intelligence Error
Everyone but Obama/Clinton's fault.

Solution: Apologize profusely, prostrate oneself, kowtow...
                 ...consider repealing the 1^st amendment of the US Constitution.

[Bon mots]

Just for this debacle alone, Obozo should resign... after firing that stupid, incompetent, arrogant Hillary.

[Bon mots]

Hillary Must Be Fired For The Debacle In Libya

The single most disastrous failure of the US State Department since Iran '79.

[Bon mots]

Fox News:

It's Time For Hillary Clinton To Resign

[hal ogen]

Wait just a second...

Isn’t hillary supposed to be the “world’s smartest woman”?????

(My apologies to other women)

[blueunicorn6]

They ran Nixon out of office because his administration supposedly lied and tried to cover-up a bungled attempt to sneak a peek at some Democrat papers. The Obama administration did lie and attempt to cover-up their incompetence that resulted in the deaths of at least six Americans including a United States Ambassador who represented all of us. Which instance is worse? Where are the front page stories in the Washington Post? Where’s the Pulitzer prize winning reporters investigating this? They can’t call the movie about this ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN PART II because of Hillary. If they were trying to impeach Nixon over Watergate, then Obama needs to go over Libyagate. The failure of the press on this casts a bloody stain on all the old media.

[Former Proud Canadian]

One question: Why was the ambassador in Benghazi?

[Irenic]

This isn’t true, is it? Just muslim propaganda?

Date: 2012/09/25 - 12:50 source: agencies print

Photo: “Innocence of Muslims” director Nakoula Basseley Nakoula at a table with slain US diplomat in Libya Chris Stevens

“Innocence of Muslims” director Nakoula Basseley Nakoula is seen at a table with slain US diplomat in Libya Chris Stevens. The picture sparked controversy in America.

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - “Innocence of Muslims” director Nakoula Basseley Nakoula is seen at a table with slain US diplomat in Libya Chris Stevens. The picture sparked controversy in America.

The Muslim world has been boiling with anti-Western sentiments over the movie and the sacrilegious cartoons printed in the French weekly Charlie Hebdo.

Anti-blasphemy demonstrations have been held across the Muslim world and several non-Muslim countries, with protesters in some countries marching on the US embassies and torching US flags.

[Irenic]

oops

[Irenic]

I am pretty certain neither fella is the one but doesn’t Ahlul Bayt News Agency reporting this put the two guys pictured at risk for their lives? I hope they know this is being reported...

[Freddd]

The answers clearly show that the “movie trailer” protest storyline had not been adopted by the Obama Administration -—————

So why does he still push that?

[ArmstedFragg]

That’s no big surprise. When he started talking about the imaginary Jews financing the film, it was pretty obvious he was repeating a Muslim wet dream. The fact he wasn’t a Christian just sort of follows.

[Dave Mellon]

Ambassador Stevens was in Benghazi to meet on the subject of working with U.S. and Libyan doctors about setting up a trauma system in Benghazi. Is that ironic enough for you?

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505263_162-57511953/a-closer-look-at-u.s-ambassador-christopher-stevens/

[Former Proud Canadian]

Good catch, but I don't believe it.

More likely, this is the cover story, and kind of late to boot. Like it took them a week and a half to concoct this one. And it is a story that begs even more questions.

Where was his security on 9/11 of all days?

Where was his advance team?

Where was his armored car?

He was CIA on a CIA mission. They don't want to admit it.

[Former Proud Canadian]

Thanks for your research. However, the president has changed that part of the story too. From his UN speech:

"Chris Stevens loved his work...Two weeks ago, he traveled to Benghazi to review plans to establish a new cultural center…"

Stranger and stranger. Obama would have you believe that a US ambassador would travel to terror central (Benghazi) to "review plans for a cultural center" on 9/11 without security or an advance team. Sure, I believe that.