they got to tripoli? >> they notified us when it was wheels down, when they got to the -- and they notified as to when they were wheeled out. >> i cannot imagine the emotion of that for you. you had no other connection to notice details of that. these frantic phone calls, they get to tripoli and you are not aware of what just happened? >> we continue to follow them but half the team had to be rushed to hospital and treated. they had just been through -- >> your detailed account of this is terrific. >> at this point, providing them the comfort to come down from the adrenaline and horror of what happened, we respected that and work with our colleagues in tripoli. >> here is my struggle with that -- you are listening in on a command center and in communication with what is going on. you get to tripoli and people are checking on them and yet the state department is testifying five days later that they didn't know what happened? it was a coordinated terrorist activity. maybe this was some spontaneous and then

from on the situation in libya is an editor of tripoli based libya herald of michel cousins joining us live from tripoli thank you for joining us now it's exactly a year into libya supposedly new dawn but what is life like for people where you are today. well it's it's very normal in a way if you go downtown people are concerned about that he will lead the streets are packed traffic in the roads is horrendous you can't move around the seventy cars because it's eve is about to start in a few days and people are out shopping for that and they're more concerned with that than they are about banding will lead i heard one of your colleagues say just now that there have been mass protests across libya to stop the fighting about and we need to be no protests in tripoli at all people are concerned really about bani walid what they are concerned about as i said is normal life a normal life carries on the streets are full of people the shops of food restaurant people going to restaurants new shops are opening all the time the thing that they are concerned about here at the moment is the lack of

it is exciting times in tripoli. with election and new congress coming together. as i read libya's recent history it is a bit like we are reliving the post world war ii years. how right he was. that was chris. always thinking, always sharp, always ready. public service is too often looked down upon by some in this country. often my colleagues in the foreign service la meant they don't make them the way they used to anymore. today we remember a man, chris stevens, whose life and service just proves how wrong my colleagues really are. chris shows us they still make them the way they used to, only an awful lot better, thank you. [applause] >> chris's family would like to invite everyone to a reception after the ceremony. it will be held over there. you are all welcome. let us pray

there were going to be in tripoli. they not only worked in tripoli, and when needed, they went down to benghazi. >> they made to-street -- -- 2-3 -- >> they were not there, so they were gone. >> secretary kennedy has stated, the specialized skills they brought when it came originally had been back filled by other parts of the state department. the specialized -- >> but not with u.s. military. that is all i need to know. >> would your response -- it looks like you were chomping at the bit. >> i would not agree. a special forces soldier is way above the skill level of a hired local national armed with a pistol. or even the agents on the ground. >> thank you. i think i remember the quote, never take a knife to a gun fight. we go to the gentleman from connecticut. >> i add my gratitude to those members of the diplomatic corps and the military who are putting their lives on the line for this country. my sympathies to the families of those that were lost. mr. chairman, i think you have one of the most important lines of ques

>> the army was deployed on the street here in tripoli and across the country. entrusted by the people, they are calming things, but roadblocks on the type of resolution. >> 11 on's leaders have always found a way to restore a certain kind of quiet -- 11 on -- lebanon's leaders. what makes it different this time is that syria is a short drive from here and full of uncertainty. people often do not know what will happen next month, let alone next year. in the offices of one of the most powerful sunni politicians in tripoli, the message is stark -- the assad regime is the enemy. >> tripoli is targeted because it is supporting syrian rebels, and the syrian regime wants to create tension haircut -- here. >> in beirut, this retail district should get -- should be full of late-night shoppers, getting ready for the holiday, but troops are out in step -- out instead, partly because the lebanese are split for and against the syrian regime. the message here is, "do not bute matters worse," with syria's trouble much closer, it is not clear how that can be done. >> in other

. >> bret: april 28th, khadafy stills hold tripoli but rebels hold benghazi. christopher stevens is sent to benghazi. a car bomb explodes in front. hotel. stevens and his team decide it's too dangerous to stay there. in august they settle on a compound on the west side of the city. >> it was a rented from an owner who had a nice villa and several out buildings as. >> well andrew wood is a 24-year special forces veteran who worked on security for u.s. personnel in libya for six months before the september 11th 2012 benghazi attack. >> there is not a lot of security. it's not a fortress. >> inside the walls are four buildings, one is essentially a large residence with a number of bedrooms in it. another residence has a cantina where the staff eats. just across the way, they have a tactical operations center, filled with security staff, folks and security monitors. finally the barracks a small house by the main gate of the compound. it will house a libyan security force. >> many viewers who traveled around europe and asia probably think one of those heavily guard

in recent months, tripoli has been the focus of pro-syrian and anti-syrian sentiment. civil war is being played out on the streets of lebanon on. as in the capital beirut, protesters are demanding the resignation of the lebanese prime minister najib mikati. they accuse him of being unable to protect lebanon from the violence perpetrated by the syrian regime. many in lebanon accuse syria of being responsible for last friday's car bomb attack which killed a lebanese intelligence chief wissam al-hassan. his funeral, thousands of opposition protesters called for their own government to resign banned for syria to end its interference in internal lebanese affairs. lebanon on's embattled prime minister is supported by many western governments who see him as a stabilizing figure. the u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton promised american help into the car bomb investigation. such support may by the government times for now, but it's not likely to survive with violence in the streets. >> let's take a look at some other stories making headlines. the cuban revolutionary leader

there were going to be in tripoli.they not only worked in tripoli, and when needed, they went down to benghazi. is that not right? >> they made 2-3 -- >> they were not there, so they were gone. and you decided that they shouldn't be redeployed. >> secretary kennedy has stated, the specialized skills they brought when it came originally had been back filled by other parts of the state department. the specialized -- >> but not with u.s. military. that is all i need to know. >> no, sir. >>>> would your response -- it looks like you were chomping at the bit. she mentioned specialized skills. would you agree? >> i would not agree. a special forces soldier is way above the skill level of a hired local national armed with a pistol. or even the agents on the ground. >> thank you. i think i remember the quote, never take a knife to a gun fight. we go to the gentleman from connecticut. >> i add my gratitude to those members of the diplomatic corps and the military who are putting their lives on the line for this country. my symp

for an attack on the embassy tripoli.hink this shows that even that night that the u.s. knew that perhaps this group ansar al-sharia with ties to al qaeda in north africa, it shows they knew militants were involved, of course, over the coming days and weeks there was a lot of back and forth whether this was a preplanned attack. >> who did the messages go to? is it possible they went to the president and vice president, they knew about the early reports? because that's the big question, when did you know what? >> that's right. well, this was sent out by the state department of operations center. so this went to the white house situation room, many officials at the white house, fbi, pentagon, cia, many different agencies. i don't think president obama or vice president biden would have gotten these messages, per se, but certainly the president and vice president were briefed that night and certainly this claim of responsibility, the idea there were armed militants, i'm sure they were notified that night about what was going

embassy in tripoli. they make their way to the annex.ccording to reports they were going into an ambushing. around 4:00 a.m. the annex compound is hit by another wave of attacks. it was planned and precise a round of mortar fire targeting the roofs of the building well behind this gate. that turned out to be dangerous and deadly. killed in that attack two security personnel glen daughterty 42 and tyrone woods 41 both former navy seals. badly injured special agent david uban the same man who struggled valiantly to save the lives of ambassador stevens and information manager smith. the fighters are repelled the annex face of operations for sensitive intelligence work tracking eastern libya is secured. a station decision is made to e the whole enterprise. 8:30 a.m. september 12th the second plane leaves with the remaining americans on board and body of stevens, smith and agents daughterty and wood. less than a month since the security team left the country to the regret of the commander lieutenant kernel and grew wood who says they would ha

on nbc tripoli. the next day the same terror group denied they were involved, causing more confusion. >> you know, posting something on facebook is not in and of itself evidence, and i think it just underscores how fluid the reporting was at the time and continues for sometime to be. >> reporter: shortly before midnight on 911, another e-mail reported that the assault on benghazi had escalated. the current shelter is under attack by mortar fire, today, reports of injuries the white house and state department says there were hundreds and even thousands of reports that night, and in the following days. all had to be analyzed. today, secretary clinton appealed for patience on benghazi, while a review board investigates what went on benghazi, but the white house knows that any detail can become a new source of criticism. andrea mitchell, nbc news, washington. >>> still ahead as nbc nightly news continues, the gathering storm, the newest hurricane, churning in the atlantic, and a new threat. and later, th

called for an attack on embassy tripoli.secretary of state hillary clinton said people must wait for what the independent accountability review board concludes. >> posting on something on facebook is not in and of itself evidence. and i think this just underscores how fluid the reporting was at the time, and continued for some time to be. >> okay, let's turn to bob bear, a former cia director of operations in the middle east. and a cnn contributor. good to see you, bob. administration officials are pointing out this same terror group also denied responsibility for the attack on another occasion just minutes if not hours in between. so how much weight did this e-mail have for the decisionmakers on september 11th? >> well, i think the important point in all of this, these e-mails, is the white house and the state department knew that the consulate in benghazi was under military attack. this was not a demonstration. there were large explosions, heavy gunfire. secondly, this went on for nearly six hours and the white house was a

they sent a small team of special operators from tripoli to benghazi a f.a.s.t.of marines from spain were set to guard the embassy but stayed to tripoli. a central operations group was moved from europe to italy, 485 miles from benghazi. f-16s and apache helicopters however remained on the tarmac in northern italy. they were not moved. two navy destroyers already in the med were moved off the coast of libya the day of the attack. >> the united states military to say they were 480 miles away and they couldn't do anything and couldn't move one aircraft in eight hours? i would say it is time to relief a lot of people in the chain of command. but i just don't believe that. >> reporter: the fighting at the consulate was over within one hour according to the recently leaked state department e-mails obtained by fox news. u.s. officials say a poor intelligence picture on the ground during the attack made the possibility of friendly fire a real possibility and u.s. officials say they needed permission from the libyan government for overflight. >> if your ambassador has be

we lived more together to locations in tripoli and embassy property in benghazi. thw sst supported security but it's for diplomatic officers in and around tripoli and other parts of libya as the work required. on two occasions, i send members to benghazi to support and bolster security at that location. the sst was closely integrated with regular diplomatic security agents working for a good for the rso as well as other diplomats teams. a travel to bring gauzy on two occasions with the rso, wants to evaluate a secure situation there and wants to conduct some work for the defense office. i was there a second time in june when the u.k. ambassadors convoy was attacked. i responded with agents in order to provide medical and security assistance to wounded u.k. security personnel. i conducted a post attack investigation of the ambush for assault. and i regularly met with an held frequent conversations with the ambassador stevens and other members of the security team. in june when eric nordstrom rotated out, i was a senior member of the country team the exception of th

i was in tripoli at the u.s. embassy for most of the day on saturday. >> what did you learn?that inform the hearing that you're going to hold with darrell issa tomorrow? >> you know, first thing we did, i got a little emotional. i expressed my -- how thankful i was that we were -- for their service to this nation. they had lost four colleagues had been killed, ambassador had been killed, but then i toured the facility, got a briefing, got an understanding. what i was struck with is i left with the impression that security wasn't dictating security but that politics were dictating security. for instance, i was there most all the day, never once did a single person mention a video, like it was not a factor. and it's -- it's -- what the administration was saying in the reality of what i heard on the ground were two different things. >> the administration had come to the conclusion that it was terrorist terrorism, they got it wrong in initially but what about the key question whether they overlooked security concerns, intelligence warnings? did anyone share with you the allegatio

. >> bret: april 28th, khadafy stills hold tripoli but rebels hold benghazi.hristopher stevens is sent to benghazi. a car bomb explodes in front. hotel. stevens and his team decide it's too dangerous to stay there. in august they settle on a compound on the west side of the city. >> it was a rented from an owner who had a nice villa and several out buildings as. >> well andrew wood is a 24-year special forces veteran who worked on security for u.s. personnel in libya for six months before the september 11th 2012 benghazi attack. >> there is not a lot of security. it's not a fortress. >> inside the walls are four buildings, one is essentially a large residence with a number of bedrooms in it. another residence has a cantina where the staff eats. just across the way, they have a tactical operations center, filled with security staff, folks and security monitors. finally the barracks a small house by the main gate of the compound. it will house a libyan security force. >> many viewers who traveled around europe and asia probably think one of those heavily guarded

their own according to various reports most of them are even suspicious of the new government in tripoli on top of that division you also have one hundred forty tribes in the country one hundred forty tribes many of them have long running grievances against each other and they're located very close to each other for example the town of bani walid that we mentioned in the report is not even two hours away from misrata so amid all the food and lawlessness people in those places no anything can happen to them last year coalition forces armed libyans to the t.c. . in order to oust moammar gadhafi today the country is flooded with weapons of all kinds and this they made twenty million weapons are still freely circulating in libya that's in a country of six million people it's roughly three guns per person today there are multiple assassinations around benghazi different parts of libya where people are settling scores of all sorts of stripes it's chaotic forces in libya well those are the weapons that the most they have the chance is not to be just is either up to the tribal or the. politics d

actually the central government in tripoli did not want. during the days of the we did not want to ensure that all wonder if we won for the local people. what i want to get to the bottom of tonight as we speak are n.t.s.c. forces in there and i will lead according to your knowledge do you know if they're all well. yes they are but you will have to take the whole to the whole picture not a part of it that the whole picture is this fire is now going over there. for the government because through this some crime has been. carried by some of our close guys and they were supposed to be giving the local government. their run away they have . they were hiding places very early that's why the local government the libyan forces has to go there bring these guys to the justice. is this the right way to do it don't you think so is this really the democracy you envision when you took part in our uprising for a bright future for libya originally armed militias that appear it appears you can control storming cities or the strongholds of people you don't w

the security requested was for tripoli, not benghazi. let me be cheer it was paul ryan who cut security funding at the state department, $300 million. it's just unbelievable. >> but it should be noted the state department said there were no budget issues with regard to security. the state department has said at least money was not the issue. i want to get your take on something else because i know you served in the army. you probably have experience with how the military protects diplomats and v.i.p.s. do you think we're serve our ambassadors as well overseas? >> i do. when you do more, it costs money, craig, and we need to make sure we're very clear. here we have an embassy in tripoli and a consulate with ambassador stevens 400 miles away in benghazi, both very important. we need to make sure we protect these folks. we need to make sure they're being protected. they're in harm's way. if we want to make sure they get all the protection they need, they erin, why would you cut $300 million. but it's a pattern with ryan and romney. he tried

well you too have marched on the government building in the capital tripoli demanding that the government stop the siege of bani walid they were dispersed by our use of firearms of which were fired in the air there was also case in it been ghazi where people have attacked and ransacked an american television channel. apparently because they were very displeased with the way that the portrayal of the siege of bani walid was being broadcast all of this is all of this is just part of the ongoing situation in libya which has not gotten any better in the years since the death of more market duffey of course we still have hot pockets of confrontation between the pro-government forces and the people who still support gadhafi they're breaking out sporadically all over the country there are also groups armed groups which are known to have links with al qaida we know about the attack on the u.s. embassy which has happened not too long ago there that as a result the american ambassador to libya was killed that the libyan government of course is saying that vonnie walid is what they call an unfortuna

tripoli -- u.s.er attack, embassy tripoli reports approximately 20 armed people fired shots, explosions have been heard, as well. ambassador stevens, who is currently in benghazi, and four mission personnel are in the compound safe haven. the 17th of february militia is providing security support. now, soledad, the next e-mail, which came out about a half hour later, said that the shots had stopped, and that all was actually calm, and you know, response team was trying to locate those personnel. but we now understand that those militants had actually breached the compound walls and had set fire to that main building of the compound, where chris stevens and sean smith died. and that last e-mail about responsibility. so what it shows is that even the night of the attack, there were indications that this extremist group, an al qaeda affiliate, could be involved, soledad. >> interesting. thanks for that. we appreciate the update. john berman has an update on our day's top stories, as well. >> convicted s

there were 13 threats or attacks in tripoli and benghazi. wood says ambassador stevens and his staff made the case for tightened security in e-mails and diplomatic cables. but one by one lost three state department security teams, their only airplane and eventually wood's squad, too. did ambassador stevens or a regional security officer fight losing another team? >> yes. >> reporter: do you feel like there was a disconnect between what you saw on the ground and what the state department folks in washington thought was going on in libya? >> there was certainly no disconnect in our transfer of information to them. they were getting the information on the situation on the ground. we sent it up through state department cables and i sent it up to the military side on the d.o.d. side so there was awareness of what the situation in libya was about. >> reporter: how did you get the word that your team would not be allowed to stay? >> we knew that was coming through the cables and draft cables going back and forth. the requests were being modified to

i tried to make contact with senator mccain because he had made several visits to tripoli. i was not able to get a response from his office. >> thank you. what time did you approach your congressperson with these concerns? >> i sent an e-mail on sunday, the 28th of september. >> fairly recently. >> guest. >> are you worried the democratic side of this aisle made several attempts, including an e-mail last weekend, trying to contact you and have some opportunity to explore the nature of those concerns you shared to possibly understand what he might be trying to testify on today, a common practice? >> i assumed the information i was giving would be shared but the entire committee at some point. >> that is why you did not respond to the e-mail from democratic staff members? >> yes. >> to pick up on mr. gordon's questioning of others on the panel, you were not encouraged or discouraged from talking to the democratic side of the aisle in preparation for this hearing? >> no, sir, it's just easier to talk to one point of contact. >> thank you. ambassador kennedy, is there an ongoin

lawmakers were also tood that neither the u-- embassy in tripoli and nor the ccnsulate in benghazi mete, fox neww. nrest.. - and the dreammact has won supporrtfrom the catholic churc. church..baltimore's archbishop williim lori today spoke out in favor of the ballot questionncallinn for in-statee "our parishes, schools, hospitals..... ive back tooour society." society." looi was joined by protestant ministers from a number of denooinations at today's news &pconference at morgan state university. the... political... war of words... over... expanned gambling.../ ccntinues... to... rack up... big biilss natss supporters... spent... more than 3 national... spent 18-million.../ mostly... n... tv coomercials../ .urging... marylanders... to... vote "no"... on... seven..../ penn national... owns ... hollywood pand... rosecrrft racewwy ...in p.g. county. 3(bailey) "we believe theedeck is tacked agaiins us as the legislation and the queetion stands toody in front of voters and so we believe voterr need to say no or we're asking voters vote no and returr the legislators to the drawings board." bo

called for an attack on embassy tripoli.ey're night, 11:57 p.m., suggest updates free benghazi shelter location also under attack. this is the annex a mile away. current shelter location for com, chief of mission, embassy personnel in benghazi under attack by mortar fire. our reports of inj you are troy chief of mission -- injuries to chief of mission staff. this is what hillary clinton said of this today. >> posting something on facebook is not in and of itself evidence. i think it underscores how fluid the reporting was at the time. the independent accountability review board is already hard at work looking at everything. not cherry picking one story here or one document there. >> looking it everything. >> bret: jay carney said in a few hours the organization ansar al-sharia claimed it had not been responsible for the attack. the problem with that, one man in custody in tunisia, is a member of ansar al-sharia. let's bring in panel. steve hayes for "weekly standard." mara liasson of national public radio. syndicated columni

attack on embassy tripoli. jay carney today took those e-mails and described them as open source unclassified e-mails. they also raised new questions as to why the white house waited eight kays days to label the ata terrorist attack. >> the independent accountability review board is hard at work reviewing everything. which i highly recommend as the inappropriate approach to something as complex as an attack like this. >> now, this is very important. clinton added and i want to quote her, posing something on facebook is not in and of itself, evidence. that was her way of saying that e-mail was off a facebook posting, but suzanne kelly is reporting the reason the suspect is in custody is because of information he posted on facebook and other websites. jason clark, jason chafe its, appreciate your taking the time. she appeared to chuckle a little bit as she talked about an independent review. she said we're not cherry picking. obviously, that's become a very politicized term over the past month. u do you think the

embassy in tripoli. they make their way to the annex.ccording to reports, they were going in to an ambush. around 4:00 a.m.,, this annex compound hit by a wave of attacks described as planned and precise. round of mortar fire targeting the roof of a building behind the escape. that turns out to be dangerous and deadly. killed in that attack, two security personnel. glen doherty, 42. tyrone woods, 41. both former navy seals. badly injured special agent david uben. the same man who struggled valueiently to save the lives -- valiantly to save lives of stevens and smith. the fighters are repelled. anex reportedly a base of operation for sensitive intelligence work tracking militants in eastern libya is secure. decision is made to evacuate the whole enterprise. 8:30 a.m. september 12. the second plane leaves with the remaining americans on board. and the bodies of ambassador stevens, smith and agents doherty and woods. it's less than a month since the military site security team left the country to the regret of the commander lieutenant colon

and in town in the east of the roots there are also reports coming in that it's in the town of tripoli . that there there is an intensifying gunfire there is well there have been armed men in civil clothing on the streets yesterday and today from the morning so it does look like there is a lot of a lot of really build up angsty among the protesters now one of the demanding well first of all these protests initially were every action to friday's bombing which took the lives of eight people among them happened to be a man who was the head of intelligence for the police top security official he was among the dead and he just happened to be one of the most. regime of syrian president bashar al assad and so now those tools so now the supporters of this particular man now they are taking out to the streets they're also calling. for. retaliation against syria they're asking they're calling for the u.n. security. forces. in syria and lebanon and of course they're also expressing their anger at the fact that a terrorist attack this happened in the city i'll have to minister. for eight years a l

hubo una primera alerta en el video electrÓnico y estÁ bajo ataque informes de la embajada en trÍpoliajador steven que estÁ actualmente en bengasi y 4 jefes de la misiÓn diplomÁtica estan en un comportamiento seguro. >>> vino otra alerta. a travÉs de un segundo correo electrÓnico. que decÍa. el tiroteo ha parado. un equipo de respuesta trata de localizar a la misiÓn di momento mact. a las 607. envÍo un tercer correo electrÓnico que decÍa. asunto. reclama responsabilidad y el email decÍa. la embajada de trÍpoli sin embargo, este mismo grupo negÓ responsabilidades en el ataque al dÍa siguiente de producirse los hechos. ellos no ofrecen toda la perspectiva de lo que pasÓ y que hay esperar los resultados de la investigaciÓn en curso. >>> creo que no refleja el nivel de informaciÓn que fluya en ese momento. y es un hecho, 4 norteamericanos. murieron murieron en los trÁgicos hechos. y se van asegurar de llegar a la investigaciÓn para tarbl cero quÉ pasÓ, agrego que corregirÁn los errores y traerÁn a la justicia a los responsables de estas muertes. marÍa elena. y informaciÓnfalsa. usÓ mal fe