By Guest Column Jeffrey Haire——Bio and Archives--October 14, 2012
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Eric Nordstrom, the former Regional Security Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Libya, told congressional investigators looking into the murder of four Americans in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, that the State Department was eager for the American diplomatic presence in Libya to reduce its American security footprint and to rely more on locals, sources tell ABC News. A senior State Department official denies the charge. In an email from Nordstrom from earlier this month obtained by ABC News, the former Regional Security Officer referred to a list of 230 security incidents in Libya that took place between June 2011 and July 2012, writing that “(t)hese incidents paint a clear picture that the environment in Libya was fragile at best and could degrade quickly. Certainly, not an environment where post should be directed to ‘normalize’ operations and reduce security resources in accordance with an artificial time table.The congressional testimony thus far reveals that the State Department disregarded the dynamic security situation in Benghazi as well as the Regional Security Office’s requests for more protection. The Benghazi post had been bombed twice, in April and June of 2012. The security situation in Libya had been well documented by the Regional Security Office in Tripoli. In fact, Mr. Nordstrom had requested additional security from the State Department for the Benghazi consulate at least twice, in March and July of 2012, and the Ambassador himself had expressed concern about the safety of the staff in the consulate. Nordstrom had requested in diplomatic cables a steady deployment of five temporary duty Diplomatic Security Officers and thirteen regular security personnel. At the time of the Benghazi attack there were only three Diplomatic Security Officers assigned to the post. There was also a small “quick response team” of American security personnel stationed less than a mile away in an annex. In his testimony, Mr. Nordstrom stated that in two phone calls to Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Charlene Lamb that Lamb told him “not to request extensions of Site Security Teams” for what Nordstrom described Lamb citing as “political reasons.” Ms. Lamb also testified at the hearing and admitted that after considering the conditions on the ground she did not believe Benghazi warranted more than the three DSO’s that were assigned. According to the congressional transcript she stated, “When the cable came in where RSO Nordstrom laid out all his staffing requirements and needs, I asked him to work out all the details and line up exactly how many security personnel did he need,” she said. “I said that personally, I would not support it.” In further questioning, Ms. Lamb denied that the security staffing levels were limited by budget. The security situation in Libya had been widely reported as unstable and volatile, yet an American Ambassador, Foreign Service Officer, and staff had been assigned to a residential compound with minimal fortification and diplomatic security. If our government has one responsibility it is for the protection of its people on US soil and in its embassies and consulates abroad. Embassies and consulates are the ultimate expression of US foreign policy (and thus influence) and securing them is the ultimate expression of American competence. The 1979 hostage crisis in Tehran proved too challenging for the Carter administration and it paid the ultimate political price. If one believes the US embassy takeover in Iran to be the beginning of the modern terror threat to the US, then the lower-profile security posture of that period can be understood in that context. However, in the ensuing 33 years, hundreds of terror attacks have demonstrated that embassies and consulates in conflict zones are especially vulnerable and require significant protection. It is disgraceful that the US State Department ignored and denied requests for increased consulate protection in Libya. Reducing the US security profile for election year political motives compromised the protection of American diplomats in Benghazi. This tragedy should be a warning to future administrations about sacrificing American lives for political gain. Jeffrey Haire is a Law Enforcement professional from Los Angeles, California. He earned his undergraduate degree in Criminal Justice Administration from San Diego State University, and a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California.
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