The US ambassador to Libya, Christopher
Stevens, and three other Americans were killed in an attack on the
consulate in Benghazi, by insurgents angered by an anti-Islam film,
the Libyan government and White House confirmed Wednesday.
A mass protest outside the consulate Tuesday against a US-produced
film deemed insulting to Prophet Mohammed, was "manipulated" by
loyalists of Moamer Gaddafi's deposed regime, the Libyan Interior
Ministry said.
Rocket-propelled grenades were used in the attack, which also
caused extensive damage to the consulate building, the ministry said.
US President Barack Obama condemned the attack and directed "all
necessary resources" to provide security to US interests in Libya and
other diplomatic posts worldwide.
"While the United States rejects efforts to denigrate the
religious beliefs of others, we must all unequivocally oppose the
kind of senseless violence that took the lives of these public
servants," Obama said.
The Benghazi attack came hours after demonstrators scaled the
fortified walls of the US embassy in Cairo and replaced the flag with
a black banner, which is popular with radical Islamists, in an
unprecedented security breach.
Scores of mainly Islamist protesters were Wednesday staging a
sit-in outside the US embassy amid heavy deployment of security
forces in Cairo.
Meanwhile, the chief of Libya's National Congress, the country's
highest authority, blamed the assault on Gaddafi loyalists and vowed
that the culprits will be brought to justice.
"This cowardly deed is an episode in the series of evil and
conspiracy against the February 17 revolution (that toppled the
Gaddafi regime)," added Mohammed al-Magariaf at a press conference in
the capital, Tripoli.
"While we vehemently condemn any attempt to defame our prophet, we
strongly denounce any use of force and the killing of innocents as a
means of expression," he added.
Al-Magariaf called on Libyans to be united to "block attempts to
harm the country's security."
He spoke before his 200-member assembly was to vote to choose a
new prime minister whose government's immediate priority will be to
restore stability to Libya.
The proliferation of arms, left behind from the conflict that
ended Gaddafi's 42-year rule last year, continues to pose a threat to
the North African country's security.
US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton praised Stevens for
his two decades of diplomatic service.
"As the conflict in Libya unfolded, Chris was one of the first
Americans on the ground in Benghazi," she said.
"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."
French President Francois Hollande called on Libyan authorities to
"shed all light on these odious, unacceptable crimes, identify those
responsible and bring them to justice."
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said: "Such violence
can never be justified ... It is important that the new Libya
continues to move towards a peaceful, secure and democratic future."
