• Dad of US bodyguard 'blown up twice' in Benghazi says State Department should admit mistakes

    Molly Riley / Pool via Getty Images, file

    President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hold their hands over their hearts during the Transfer of Remains Ceremony for the return of Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three Americans at Joint Base Andrews on Sept. 14.

    By NBC News staff and Reuters

    The father of an American bodyguard injured in the deadly attack on the U.S. mission in Libyan city of Benghazi said Wednesday the State Department should own up to what he said were its mistakes and release more information about what occurred.

    David Ubben, a 31-year-old State Department employee, suffered broken bones and other injuries in the Sept. 11 attack that killed the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other Americans.


    As David Ubben recuperates at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center outside Washington, his father, Rex Ubben, said he did not blame the State Department or Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for his son's injuries.

    But he added, "I do find it troubling that they have not owned up to their shortcomings; in government, in the military, and in business, if something goes wrong, you admit it, correct it, and move on."

    "If you were in charge, it was your fault," he said in an email exchange with Reuters.

    Rex Ubben's comments came after some congressional Republicans on Tuesday called for Clinton to provide more information about security at U.S. compounds in Benghazi in the days, weeks and months leading up to the attacks.

    The administration is under more fire from Congress over its handling of the Benghazi attack – with new questions about security and intelligence failure. Ambassador Chris Hill joins Andrea Mitchell Reports to discuss.

    Sensitive documents left behind at US consulate in Benghazi, Libya

    In a letter to Clinton, Reps. Darrell Issa of California and Jason Chaffetz of Utah recounted a number of attacks in Libya this year and alleged that requests from U.S. officials in the country for heightened security went unheeded.

    Debate over whether President Barack Obama's administration was caught unprepared by an assault by militant groups has become U.S. election-year fodder.

    At the consulate where four Americans died security consisted of one U.S. regional security officer and a local militia. Ambassador Chris Stevens often had little personal security detail. NBC's Lisa Myers reports.

    Ubben said people understood "mistakes and lack of foresight do happen," but, "to attempt to delay or cover information up, upcoming election or no, might put other people's lives at risk and fools no one."

    Clinton vowed Wednesday to pursue a full accounting of the deadly attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi "wherever that leads," but cautioned it could take time for a complete picture to emerge.

    Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., joins Morning Joe to discuss a grim milestone for U.S. troop deaths in Afghanistan, President Obama's relationship with U.S. military leaders, the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya and the upcoming presidential debates.

    "There are continuing questions about what exactly happened in Benghazi on that night three weeks ago. And we will not rest until we answer those questions and until we track down the terrorists who killed our people," Clinton said in Washington.

    Federal officials told NBC News on Thursday that members of an FBI team sent to Libya are now in Benghazi. 

    Military forces secured the site to permit the FBI to conduct an investigation of the site in an effort to collect forensic evidence and recover any U.S. documents that may have been left at the scene. The FBI had not visited the site until now because of the potential threat from regional militias.

    The Benghazi attack killed U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens, information technology specialist Sean Smith and security guards Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods.

    FBI agents keep out of Benghazi

    Ubben said his son was on temporary assignment in Libya and that his deployment came in July, after - and perhaps in response to - earlier security incidents.

    Mohammad Hannon / AP, file

    A Libyan man explains that bloodstains on a column are from one of the American staff members injured on Sept. 11 in the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya.

    On June 6, an improvised bomb was placed at the north gate of the Benghazi mission. It blew a hole in the fence.

    Rex Ubben, 60, said he was a 24-year Air Force veteran who retired in 1995 as master sergeant. He was based at various U.S. embassies. Since retiring, he has been a computer programmer for several banks.

    Son said it was an attack, not a riot
    He said David Ubben described the violence on Sept. 11 as "obviously an attack and not a riot," and sketched out what appeared to be a sophisticated mortar attack during the second wave of the assault. That took place at another compound where U.S. and Libyan personnel retreated, and resulted in the death of Doherty and Woods.

    "What I wanted to know was whether the second part of the attack was pre-planned. The first (mortar) dropped 50 yards short and the next two were right on target," he said, adding his son "was not conscious for any more."

    Libyan president to NBC: Anti-Islam film had 'nothing to do with' US Consulate attack

    "This indicates to me that someone was either very, very good, highly trained and skilled, or that the mortar was already set up and pointed at the safe house and only minor adjustments were needed," he said.

    Thousands of Libyans stormed the headquarters of an Islamist militia group in Benghazi Friday night in a deadly exchange. NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin reports.

    Ubben also questioned why it took so long for his son to reach a hospital after the attack, saying of his son's condition, "by my count, there were five or six broken bones (one completely smashed, thus the operations) and shrapnel damage head to toe. I was surprised at how many parts of him were injured."

    Libya arrests four suspected in deadly US Consulate attack in Benghazi

    David Ubben is having a series of surgeries and his father expects him to be hospitalized for several months.

    Several questions still remain as to why top U.S. officials offered the wrong initial assessment of the Benghazi attacks that killed four Americans. Was there a cover-up? Or were they trying to avoid acknowledging mistakes so close to the presidential election? The Obama administration has denied any wrongdoing. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.

    Rex Ubben said his son did not share many details of the attack with him, but added: "He seems to have been blown up twice, and kept going after the first one. ... I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to whoever did the first aid the first time, the second time, and maintained the tourniquets until they could get him out of there."

    Ubben said he was bothered that "people do not seem to realize that this was a much bigger disaster for the people of Libya than it was for us, that they were attacked just like we were."

    NBC News' Pete Williams and Jim Miklaszewski contributed to this story.

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  • Family of slain US envoy Chris Stevens sets up peace fund

    U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens in an undated photo.

     

    By Lisa Fernandez, NBCBayArea.com

    The outpouring of support in the wake of U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens' death has prompted his family in the San Francisco Bay Area, and elsewhere, to establish a fund to support innovative "people-to-people" ideas that further peace in the Middle East.


    Stevens' brother, Tom Stevens, 46, an assistant U.S. Attorney in San Francisco, told NBC Bay Area on Friday that his family has established the J. Christopher Stevens Fund to award individuals and organizations who have good ideas on how to promote tolerance and peace in the Middle East.

    "We just had this overwhelming response," Tom Stevens said. "We have received emails, texts, letters, flowers, you name it. And then Chris' Facebook page, it just went worldwide. We just wanted to put all these wishes to good use and see them carried out."

    Chris Stevens, 52, was killed, along with three other embassy workers on Sept. 11 in Benghazi, Libya, a country where he was the United States ambassador. The White House has deemed the killing a terrorist attack, although the specific perpetrators and motives have not clearly been spelled out.

    Stevens attended the University of California at Berkeley, and UC Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco.  Most of his family, including his mother and stepfather, live in the Oakland and the East Bay.

    He was the first U.S. envoy to be killed in the line of duty since 1979.

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    The fund named after Christopher Stevens is officially a partner of the New Venture Fund, a nonprofit public charity in Washington, D.C., and should soon have an advisory board of members who will determine how future donations will be spent, Tom Stevens said.

    Tom Stevens encouraged anyone who wants to donate, and anyone who wants to submit an idea for a project, to contact the family on the www.rememberingchrisstevens.com homepage. At this point of its early inception, Tom Stevens said the family is considering a number of proposals, but no grants have been distributed yet.

    In general, Tom Stevens said that the board is likely to grant money to established groups whose mission is to help "build bridges" between Americans and people in the Middle East — places where his older brother had worked including Libya, Tunisia, Israel, Syria and Egypt.

    Watch US News videos on NBCNews.com

    Tom Stevens said projects that will be considered for funding depending on the amount of money raised will "promote religious tolerance, cultural understanding, educational youth exchanges, and other people-to-people programs."

    Plans to memorialize Chris Stevens have still to be finalized.

    To post a remembrance or photo, or to make a tax-deductible donation to the J. Christopher Stevens Fund, click here.  To send a private message or funding proposal idea, send an email to rememberingchrisstevens@gmail.com.

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  • Libyan president to NBC: Anti-Islam film had 'nothing to do with' US Consulate attack

    In an interview with NBC's Ann Curry, Libya's president Mohammed Magarief said there's 'no doubt' the attack that killed four Americans in Libya was preplanned, and not a result of the controversial anti-Islam movie that sparked violent protests.

     

    By NBC News staff

    Updated at 6:37 p.m. ET: An anti-Islam film that sparked violent protests in many countries had "nothing to do with" a deadly attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi earlier this month, Libya's president told NBC News.

    In an exclusive interview with NBC News' Ann Curry, President Mohamed Magarief discounted claims that the attack was in response to a movie produced in California and available on YouTube. He noted that the assault happened on Sept. 11 and that the video had been available for months before that.

    "Reaction should have been, if it was genuine, should have been six months earlier. So it was postponed until the 11th of September," he said. "They chose this date, 11th of September to carry a certain message."

    NYT: Deadly Libya attack a major blow to CIA efforts

    Magarief said there were no protesters at the site before the attack, which he noted came in two assaults, first with rocket-propelled grenades on the consulate, then with mortars at a safe house.

    Slideshow: Anger over film spreads throughout Muslim world

    Khaled Abdullah / Reuters

    Protests ignited by a controversial film that ridicules Islam's Prophet Muhammad spread throughout Muslim world.

    Launch slideshow

    The attack took the lives of Ambassador Chris Stevens, as well as information management officer Sean Smith and security personnel Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty.

    US Ambassador Chris Stevens was 'courageous,' Obama says

    Magarief told Curry that based on the accuracy of the assault, he believes the attackers must have had training and experience using the weapons.

    "It's a pre-planned act of terrorism," he said, adding that the anti-Islam film had "nothing to do with this attack."

    Though Magarief believes the attack was the work of Islamist fundamentalists, he dismisses any notion that Libya is in danger of becoming a theocracy.

    Libyan President Mohammed Magarief tells NBC's Ann Curry that Islamic fundamentalists do not share the same goals and aspirations as most people in his country.

    “This will never happen,“ he said. “ They don’t have the strength. They don’t have the supporters. They will remain a minority that’s isolated, that will not be accepted by us. And I’m sure Libyans will fight to the last man against seeing this happen in our land.”

    'A strong friend'
    Magarief said that while Libyans appeared to be behind the attack that "these Libyans do not represent the Libyan people or Libyan population in any sense of the word."

    Hilary Stevens, sister of Christopher Stevens, the U.S. Ambassador to Libya who died Tuesday during an attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi. In an interview with Rock Center Anchor Brian Williams, Stevens reflects on her brother's legacy and work.

    He added: "We consider the United States as a friend, not only a friend, a strong friend, who stood with us in our moment of need."

    More than 40 people have been questioned in connection with the incident, the Libyan leader told Curry.

    He described Stevens as a "humble and very unique human being" and a "great friend of Libya."

    Backlash: Protesting Libyans storm militant compound

    Thousands of Libyans stormed the headquarters of an Islamist militia group in Benghazi Friday night in a deadly exchange. NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin reports.

    The Obama administration initially maintained that the attacks were directly linked to protests over the film. Speaking on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sept. 16, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said: “What happened in Benghazi was in fact initially a spontaneous reaction to what had just transpired hours before in Cairo, almost a copycat of the demonstrations against our facility in Cairo, prompted by the video.”

    However, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney last week said it was "self-evident that what happened in Benghazi was a terrorist attack."

    Slain ambassador's mom: 'He was trying to do something much bigger'

    Speaking before the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, President Barack Obama said: “There are no words that excuse the killing of innocent” people.

    On Tuesday, President Obama spoke to the United Nations general assembly in an emotional speech about the recent violence against Americans. NBC's Chuck Todd reports.

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  • Americans killed in US consulate attack honored at Andrews

    The bodies of four idealistic patriots, all of whom were described as having lived the "American ideal," were mourned Friday by President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.

    By Kari Huus, NBC News

    The bodies of four Americans killed in an attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, earlier in the week were returned to the United States and honored in a somber ceremony at Joint Base Andrews, Md., on Friday.


    President Barack Obama arrived shortly before the transfer ceremony honoring the victims — U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, information management officer Sean Smith and security personnel Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty.

    Marines carried flag-draped coffins bearing the remains of the four across the tarmac and placed them before a gathering of family, friends, White House officials and high-level State Department personnel. In total, 800 to 1,000 were in attendance, an Air Force official said.

    After a moment of silence and a prayer, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton eulogized each of the victims.

    "We owe it to those four men to continue the long, hard work of diplomacy," Clinton said.

    "May God bless them, and grant their families peace and solace, and may God continue to bless the United States of America," Clinton said, before making way for comments by Obama.

    How much are taxpayers spending on Egypt and Libya?

    The president said the men embodied and lived "the American ideal," embracing what he called "the fundamental American belief that we can leave this world a little better than before."

    President Obama attends a ceremonial transfer of the remains of four Americans killed in an attack on the U.S. Consulate in Libya.

    In honoring the fallen Americans, he also made a case for continued diplomatic and aid commitments to allies in the Middle East.

    "Even as voices of suspicion and mistrust seek to divide countries and cultures from one another, the United States of America will never retreat from the world. We will never stop working for the dignity and freedom that every person deserves. ... That's the spirit that sets us apart from other nations. That was their work in Benghazi and this is the work we will carry on."

    After the national anthem and a prayer, "America the Beautiful" was played as the caskets were loaded into waiting hearses, which then departed.

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  • US Ambassador Chris Stevens was 'courageous and exemplary,' Obama says

    By Alastair Jamieson, NBC News

    J. Christopher Stevens, the U.S. Ambassador to Libya who was among four Americans killed amid protests in Libya, was a "courageous and exemplary representative of the United States," President Barack Obama said in a statement on Wednesday.

    The four -- who also included Foreign Service Information Management Officer Sean Smith, a father of two -- "exemplified America's commitment to freedom, justice, and partnership with nations and people around the globe," Obama said.

    Born in 1960 in northern California, Stevens had been a diplomat for two decades after previously working as an international trade lawyer in Washington, D.C., according to his biography on the State Department website.

    "Chris was committed to advancing America's values and interests, even when that meant putting himself in danger," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday in a statement posted on the official Facebook page of the U.S. Embassy in Tripoli.

     

    Ben Curtis / AP, file

    U.S. envoy Chris Stevens speaks to local media at the Tibesty Hotel in Benghazi, Libya, in this Monday, April 11, 2011 file photo.

    "I had the privilege of swearing in Chris for his post in Libya only a few months ago. As the conflict in Libya unfolded, Chris was one of the first Americans on the ground in Benghazi. He risked his own life to lend the Libyan people a helping hand to build the foundation for a new, free nation. He spent every day since helping to finish the work that he started."

    Stevens had only just taken up his appointment, arriving in May after having served two previous roles in the country: Special Representative to the Libyan Transitional National Council during the Libyan revolution from March 2011 to November 2011, and Deputy Chief of Mission from 2007 to 2009.

    US ambassador, 3 others killed in attacks on Libya mission

    He had also previously worked in Jerusalem, Damascus and Riyadh and was a Pearson Fellow with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. From 1983 to 1985 he taught English as a Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco.

    A video posted on the U.S. Embassy's official YouTube channel in May showed Stevens introducing himself to the Libyan people and speaking of his excitement at his new role.

    President Obama, alongside Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, condemns "in the strongest terms" the "outrageous and shocking attack" that claimed the lives of Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans at the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.

    He was fluent in Arabic and French, and had earned an undergraduate degree at the University of California at Berkeley in 1982, a J.D. from the University of California's Hastings College of Law in 1989, and an M.S. from the National War College in 2010.

    'Smiling, easygoing'
    The Washington Post reported that Stevens was "smiling, easygoing and friendly" and "well-known at the State Department and on Capitol Hill."

    His efforts to improve relations between the U.S. and Libya were underlined at one of his most recent public appearances. At a reception in Tripoli on August 26, he announced that the issuing of U.S. visas to Libyans would resume the following morning, according to a report in The Tripoli Post.

    "The reopening of our consular section will create new opportunities for deepening the ties between our two countries," the newspaper quoted him as saying. "Relationships between governments are important, but relationships between people are the real foundation of mutual understanding," Stevens said.

    A statement from Frank Wu, Chancellor and Dean of the University of California's Hastings College of the Law, issued to NBC Bay Area station KNTV, said: "The Ambassador was performing the highest role that a lawyer is called upon to perform: public service. He and I communicated when he was appointed Ambassador. He had been looking forward to sharing his experiences with students when he returned. This is a tragedy. We mourn this loss."

    U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Select Committee on Intelligence, also issued a statement, saying: "I had the chance of meeting Ambassador Chris Stevens during his confirmation process and again when I visited Libya last year. He was an exemplary diplomat and his embassy staff could not have been more helpful and knowledgeable during my visit. My prayers are with the families and loved ones of these courageous diplomats who were working to help the Libyan people rise from the ashes of Gaddafi's rule."

    Steven McDonald, a longtime friend of U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens who was killed in the consulate attack in Libya, comments on his friend's compassion, integrity and commitment.

    Lara Friedman, director of policy and government relations at Israeli-American charity, Americans for Peace Now, who described herself as a friend of Stevens, posted on Twitter that his death was "incomprehensible, tragic."

    The BBC reported that, in diplomatic cables leaked by the WikiLeaks site in 2010, Stevens had once described Col. Moammar Gadhafi as "notoriously mercurial" and wrote that he could be an "engaging and charming interlocutor."

    Sean Smith was a husband and a father of two, who joined the State Department ten years ago, Clinton's statement said. "Like Chris, Sean was one of our best. Prior to arriving in Benghazi, he served in Baghdad, Pretoria, Montreal, and most recently The Hague," it said.

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