This is a compelling, raw, and impactful read. If you’re like me, you’ve heard lots about the Benghazi disaster via the media but this brings it into a much sharper focus. The book notes that it is not designed to point blame but it’s tough to read this and not want answers and accountability.
What I learned
Benghazi is the second major city in Libya. The late dictator, Gaddafi, pretty much crushed Benghazi and favored Tripoli. The Libyan uprising against Gaddafi began in Benghazi.
The US had an embassy in Tripoli and a Special Mission in Benghazi, located inside a compound. Close to the compound, was the CIA Annex. The US Ambassador, Chris Stevens, seemed like a genuine guy and wanted to support the people of Benghazi.
The US created a Global Response Staff (GRS) after 9/11 to protect US operations and personnel in dangerous locations. These included CIA security people and former military “special operators” who were contractors. The GRS in Benghazi were located in the CIA Annex. The CIA base chief is known only as “Bob.” That’s a good thing, because readers are left with a very poor impression of Bob.
The Benghazi operation were also protected by local “friendly” Libyan forces called the 17 February militia and hired local Libyan (unarmed) security. Both of these local forces seemed to be unreliable and unpredictable.
The main players
The contract operators are Rone, Jack, Tig, D.B., Tanto, and Oz. These guys are tough. Forget everything you’ve heard about tough before — these guys are at a new level.
Chris Stevens, the US Ambassadors, comes across as a really impressive individual. At one point, the book mentions that “Outside the view of reporters, he met with fellow diplomats and Libyans of high and low station, from government ministers to local officials, powerful businessmen to small shopkeepers … Often Stevens’ contacts grew so comfortable in his presence that they dispensed with titles altogether, and used his first name” (chapter 3).
Interestingly, Stevens had previously asked for increased security in Libya but this had been denied.
The Attack
In September, Stevens visited the Special Mission in Benghazi to participate at a ribbon cutting event at a local school. His visit had been reported in the media and he brought two security officers with him.
On the morning of September 11, a Libyan national was observed scouting out and photographing the compound from a neighboring building.
Around 9pm, the Ambassador went to his room for the evening. Shortly after that, armed attackers stormed the compound, the gates were opened, the Libyan guards disappeared, and the attackers began setting fire to the building in which the Ambassador was staying. In panic, the Americans in the compound contacted Tripoli and Washington and sought safety in the “safe haven” within the compound.
In a stunning turn of events, the operators in the annex, who had geared up and were ready to rush to the compound, were told to stand down by the CIA chief, Bob. He insisted that he wanted the local Libyan forces to resolve the problem. He didn’t want the operators involved. Frustrated, the operators stood by as they heard the desperate radio calls from the trapped Americans who were under attack and unable to escape.
In the compound safe haven, the Ambassador and two of his security team were battling smoke inhalation and desperately seeking a way out of the building. In the smoke and confusion, the ambassador and one of the team, Sean Smith, became separated. Neither would survive the attack.
Back at the annex, some 20 minutes after receiving the first calls, the operators defied the CIA boss and set out for the compound. In the ensuring 13 hours, the team, with reinforcements from Tripoli, rescued the surviving Americans and returned to the Annex. Despite desperate attempts, no one was able to locate the ambassador from the burning building but they did recover the body of Sean Smith.
Back at the Annex, the exhausted team braced for another attack. The attack came in the former of mortar fire, which killed one of the operators (Rone) and one of the Tripoli team (Glen Doherty), and seriously wounded another (Oz). Finally, support arrived and evacuated the surviving Americans to the airport.
Libyan nationals recovered the body of the ambassador and returned it to the Americans.
What was shocking?
The most shocking thing was the decision of the CIA boss not to send in the operators to rescue the Americans in the compound. The operators believed this cost lives. Referring to one of the operators, the author notes:
“He believed that Sean Smith wouldn’t be dead and Chris Stevens wouldn’t be missing , if only they’d rushed to the Compound when they first jocked up.” (chapter 10).
It was also stunning that back in the US, the Obama Administration was selling the story that the attack was unplanned and was the result of a demonstration against an anti-Muslim video. In reality, this appeared to be a well-planned and orchestrated account, a position the Administration was later forced to admit.
Concluding thoughts
It’s a long book but it’s absolutely worth reading. It’s compelling because it really happened and it was the first time the US had lost an ambassador since the 1970s.
The commitment of the operators and the other security team members was amazing. It’s a miracle that the US didn’t lose more people in the incident.
In Memory of the four Americans and seven Libyans who paid the ultimate price:
J. Christopher Stevens
Sean Smith
Tyrone (Rone) Woods
Glen (Bub) Doherty