FBI seeks help identifying three suspects seen at Benghazi mission during attack

FBI seeks help identifying three suspects seen at Benghazi mission during attack

FBI.gov

The FBI is seeking information about these three individuals who were on the grounds of the U.S. Special Mission in Benghazi when it was attacked on Sept. 11, 2012.

By Richard Esposito, Jonathan Dienst and Joe Valiquette
NBC News

The FBI is seeking the public’s help identifying three suspects captured by surveillance cameras on the grounds of the U.S. Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya, when it was attacked on Sept. 11, 2012. U.S. Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and three other Americans died in the nighttime assault.

The FBI, working with a number of U.S. and foreign agencies, has identified about 45 persons suspected of involvement in the attack, according to law enforcement sources who spoke with NBC News on condition of anonymity. Of those 45 about 25 have been identified, they said.

The bureau, which posted photos of the trio on its website, did not explain why it focused on them among the 25 unidentified suspects.

“We are seeking information about three individuals who were on the grounds of the U.S. Special Mission when it was attacked,” it said in a short post accompanying the photos. “These individuals may be able to provide information to help in the investigation.”

The FBI urged anyone with information to send a text or email to BenghaziTips@ic.fbi.gov.

Up to several hundred gunmen attacked the U.S. diplomatic mission and a CIA annex in Benghazi in the night of the 11th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington by al Qaeda.

The incident has raised questions about the adequacy of security at U.S. embassies around the globe and where to draw the line between protecting American diplomats in dangerous places and giving them enough freedom to do their jobs.

U.S. intelligence officials say militants with ties to al Qaeda affiliates were likely involved in the attack and witnesses say members of the Islamist Ansar al-Shariah group were at the scene.

Libyan authorities said eight people were detained in the immediate aftermath of the attack and around 50 were "wanted for investigation.” The eight turned out to be only looters, Reuters reported in December, citing local officials.