WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. investigators are looking into whether the deadly attack on a U.S. consulate in Libya was a coordinated terrorist assault to mark the anniversary of the Sept. 11attacks and not just spontaneous mob violence triggered by an anti-Islam video on YouTube.
Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed when an armed mob stormed the U.S. consulate in Benghazi Tuesday and set it ablaze.
The speaker of Libya's Parliament says the attackers "may have had foreign loyalties" — an apparent reference to international terrorists.
President Barack Obama says the U.S. will work with the Libyan government to find those responsible and vows: "Justice will be done."
Fifty U.S. Marines are headed to Libya to reinforce security at the American embassy in Tripoli, while the Pentagon is moving two warships to the Libyan coast. Officials say the ships, which carry Tomahawk missiles, give commanders flexibility to respond to any mission ordered by the president. Pentagon spokesman George Little says the U.S. military "regularly takes precautionary steps" in such situations.
%@AP Links
295-a-18-(President Barack Obama, at campaign rally)-"States of America (cheers fade)"-President Barack Obama says he will seek justice for the victims of the embassy attack. ((note length of cut)) (12 Sep 2012)
<<CUT *295 (09/12/12)>> 00:18 "States of America (cheers fade)"
296-a-15-(President Barack Obama, at campaign rally)-"of their sacrifice"-President Barack Obama says the four Americans who died in the attack on the embassy in Libya were dedicated to helping one of the newest democracies in the world. (12 Sep 2012)
<<CUT *296 (09/12/12)>> 00:15 "of their sacrifice"
243-a-06-(Martin Indyk (IHN'-dihk), vice president, director, foreign policy program, The Brookings Institution)-"the outside world"-Brookings Institution Director For Foreign Policy Martin Indyk says Ambassador Chris Stevens loved being on the front lines of diplomacy. (12 Sep 2012)
<<CUT *243 (09/12/12)>> 00:06 "the outside world"
245-a-14-(Martin Indyk (In-Dihk), former ambassador and director for foreign policy, Brookings Institution, in AP interview)-"took advantage of"-Brookings Institution Director For Foreign Policy Martin Indyk says al-Qaida has long had operations in North Africa. (12 Sep 2012)
<<CUT *245 (09/12/12)>> 00:14 "took advantage of"
GRAPHICSBANK: Burnt vehicle after attack at US Consulate that killed US Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens, Benghazi, Libya, on texture with US CONSULATE ATTACKED lettering, finished graphic (12 Sep 2012)
APPHOTO CAI121: Libyans walk on the grounds of the gutted U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, after an attack that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens, Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2012. The American ambassador to Libya and three other Americans were killed when a mob of protesters and gunmen overwhelmed the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, setting fire to it in outrage over a film that ridicules Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Ambassador Chris Stevens, 52, died as he and a group of embassy employees went to the consulate to try to evacuate staff as a crowd of hundreds attacked the consulate Tuesday evening, many of them firing machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades.(AP Photo/Ibrahim Alaguri) (12 Sep 2012)
<<APPHOTO CAI121 (09/12/12)>>
APPHOTO CAI124: Glass, debris and overturned furniture are strewn inside a room in the gutted U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, after an attack that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens, Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2012. The American ambassador to Libya and three other Americans were killed when a mob of protesters and gunmen overwhelmed the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, setting fire to it in outrage over a film that ridicules Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Ambassador Chris Stevens, 52, died as he and a group of embassy employees went to the consulate to try to evacuate staff as a crowd of hundreds attacked the consulate Tuesday evening, many of them firing machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades.(AP Photo/Ibrahim Alaguri) (12 Sep 2012)
<<APPHOTO CAI124 (09/12/12)>>
APPHOTO ABC110: In this photo taken Monday, April 11, 2011, then U.S. envoy Chris Stevens, center, accompanied by British envoy Christopher Prentice, left, speaks to Council member for Misrata Dr. Suleiman Fortia, right, at the Tibesty Hotel where an African Union delegation was meeting with opposition leaders in Benghazi, Libya. Libyan officials say the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans have been killed in an attack on the U.S. consulate in the eastern city of Benghazi by protesters angry over a film that ridiculed Islam's Prophet Muhammad. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) (11 Apr 2011)
<<APPHOTO ABC110 (04/11/11)>>
