U.S. Captures Suspect In Benghazi Attack

Ahmed Abu Kattalah, the alleged ringleader of the September 2012 attack in Benghazi, has been arrested.

Benghazi Attack Aftermath

After nearly two years, the United States has taken a suspect in the September 11, 2012 attack on the American diplomatic outpost in Benghazi into custody:

CAIRO — United States commandos have captured the suspected ringleader of the attack on the United States mission in Benghazi, Libya, that killed Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, the White House and Pentagon officials said Tuesday.

Apprehension of the suspect, Ahmed Abu Khattala, is a major breakthrough in the two-and-a-half-year-old investigation into the attack, which also killed three other Americans. President Obama vowed swift action to bring the perpetrators to justice, but efforts to identity and prosecute the attackers were stymied by the chaos of the event and the broader mayhem in Libya.

Officials briefed on the investigation have said for more than a year that a plan to capture Mr. Abu Khattala was on Mr. Obama’s desk awaiting approval. But the administration held back, in part for fear that an American raid to retrieve him might further destabilize the already tenuous Libyan government. Diplomats also suggested that the United States investigators might have been struggling to produce sufficient witness testimony and other evidence to convict Mr. Abu Khattala of responsibility for the deaths in an American court.

he execution of the raid, which was first reported by The Washington Post, appears to signal that the investigators are confident in their case, and it may also reflect an acceptance that Libya is unlikely to become a stable partner in the pursuit of the culprits any time soon.

Indeed, a renegade general based in Benghazi is currently waging a low-grade military campaign against local Islamist militants like Mr. Abu Khattala, and the United States may have sought to arrest the suspect before the general, Khalifa Heftar, killed him in the fighting there.

The Pentagon announced that Mr. Abu Khattala had been captured on Sunday. “All U.S. personnel involved in the operation have safely departed Libya,” a Pentagon statement said.

Mr. Obama issued a statement moments later. “Since the deadly attacks on our facilities in Benghazi, I have made it a priority to find and bring to justice those responsible for the deaths of four brave Americans,” Mr. Obama said.

The seizure of Mr. Abu Khattala by the American team, Mr. Obama said, “is a testament to the painstaking efforts of our military, law enforcement, and intelligence personnel. Because of their courage and professionalism, this individual will now face the full weight of the American justice system.”

A United States law enforcement official said the military-law enforcement team — composed of American commandos and F.B.I. agents — captured Mr. Abu Khattala somewhere on the outskirts of Benghazi. No shots were fired, no civilians were hurt and no one else was taken into custody, the official said, in what was apparently a surprise raid.

The Washington Post has further details on the raid that led to the suspect’s capture:

Officials, speaking on condition of anonymity about the still-secret operation, would not say where Abu Khattala was being held. They said he was “en route” to the United States but would not say when he was expected to arrive.

Several terrorist suspects abducted overseas have been held aboard U.S. naval ships at sea while being interrogated, after which they were turned over to FBI “clean teams” to question them for trial without endangering the admissibility of evidence.

The State Department designated Abu Khattala a terrorist in January, calling him a “senior leader” of the Benghazi branch of the militant organization Ansar al-Sharia, a group that arose after the 2011 fall of the Libyan regime of Moammar Gaddafi.

Ansar al-Sharia was also designated a terrorist organization and held specifically responsible for the Sept. 11, 2012, assault on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi that left U.S. Ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens and State Department security official Sean Smith dead.

Two CIA contractors, Tyrone S. Woods and Glen Doherty, were killed early the next day in a mortar attack at a nearby CIA annex where the attackers moved after overtaking the diplomatic compound.

(…)

Officials who confirmed Abu Khattala’s capture declined to comment on whether others were apprehended with him, or to describe the specific military or law enforcement units that were involved. Last October, commandos from the Army’s elite Delta Force, along with members of the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team, carried out a similar raid in Tripoli, the Libyan capital, and abducted Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai,who is accused of participating in the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in East Africa.

Ruqai, also known as Anas al-Libi, is currently awaiting trial in New York.

A plan to grab Abu Khattala days after Ruqai’s capture was postponed because of violent uprisings against the Libyan government, which had approved the abductions. Asked whether Libya had approved the Sunday abduction, a U.S. official said: “I am not going to get into the specifics of our diplomatic discussions, but to be clear: This was a unilateral U.S. operation.”

“We have made clear to successive Libyan governments our intention to bring to justice the perpetrators of the attack on our facilities in Benghazi,” the official said. “So it should come as no surprise to the Libyan government that we would take advantage of an opportunity to bring Abu Khattala to face justice.”

Zack Beauchamp at Vox has a good explainer of who Abu Kattalah is, and the efforts that we’ve been making for more than a year to bring him to justice.

Along with the announcement of the arrest, Federal officials also unsealed a Criminal Complaint that had been filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia charging Abu Khattala with what can generically be called murder, terrorism, and conspiracy along with related firearms charges. The affidavit supporting the Complaint doesn’t appear to have been made public as yet, although that’s not surprising since it would likely contain information that the government would prefer to keep sealed for the time being if it could lead to the capture of other suspects. In any case, the selection of the District as the venue is somewhat interesting. In the past, cases such as this have been tried in the U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Virginia, with a handful of terrorism-related cases also having been tried in New York City. This will, I believe, be the first significant terrorism trial in the District of Columbia, which at the very least will make the security issues interesting given the Courthouse’s location.

As with all things Benghazi, this will no doubt have political reverberations. With Hillary Clinton out on her book tour, which will include appearances on CNN and Fox this week, Benghazi is an issue that has been back in the news to begin with, and the recent selection of the House Select Committee and revelations about undisclosed White House emails have brought it back into the news as well. Additionally, several polls have shown that the issue has resonated with the public, and is having an impact on Clinton’s own favorability ratings. To some degree, one thinks that this news will constitute some degree of push back against the GOP’s emphasis on the issue. Of course, we can also expect conservatives to push back as well, and that started within less than an hour of the announcement of Abu Kattalah’s capture when Rush Limbaugh suggested there was an “amazing coincidence” that it happened on the same day as Clinton’s scheduled Fox News appearance. I wouldn’t be surprised to see similar suggestions from others on the right.

On the whole, though, Abu Kattalah’s capture is good news that will hopefully lead to the capture of others involved in the attack that killed an American Ambassador and three others. Additionally, it could possibly also lead to some definitive evidence regarding many of the questions surrounding the attack itself, such as the extent to which it was pre-planned or, as the Administration has long suggested, a largely spontaneous attack that took advantage of protests in the wider Arab world. Even if we don’t get any intelligence out of the attack, though, we’ll be bringing the man who apparently led the attack to justice, and that is long overdue.

Photo via New York Times

FILED UNDER: Africa, Crime, Intelligence, Law and the Courts, National Security, Terrorism, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Doug Mataconis
About Doug Mataconis
Doug Mataconis held a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. He joined the staff of OTB in May 2010 and contributed a staggering 16,483 posts before his retirement in January 2020. He passed far too young in July 2021.

Comments

  1. Rob in CT says:

    [Derp] You mean they caught Obama? [/Derp]

    I’m guessing this will do little to hamper the argument that the Obama administration didn’t care about finding the suspects. All credit given will be given to the military, all blame for any failures (what about the other suspects, HUH?) will be placed on O.

    Of course, it will be terribly important that no one “spikes the football” (meaning pointing out that this falsifies the claims that Obama, his administration, Dems in general, etc. don’t care about catching terrorists or whatever the Derp of the Day is).

  2. beth says:

    Seriously, if Obama personally cured cancer tomorrow, the headline on Fox News would be “Obama causes thousands of healthcare workers to lose their jobs”. Nothing will surprise me after the disgusting spectacle they made of themselves over the Bergdahl recovery.

  3. C. Clavin says:

    Boehner…

    “…It is obviously good news that this terrorist is now in American custody, and I am grateful for the work of our military — assisted by the FBI — in capturing him…I look forward to hearing more details regarding the raid, and I expect the administration to give our military professionals time to properly gather any useful intelligence he has…”

    Is Boehner advocating the use of enhanced interrogation torture here?
    Obama…

    The fact that he is now in U.S. custody is a testament to the painstaking efforts of our military, law enforcement, and intelligence personnel. Because of their courage and professionalism, this individual will now face the full weight of the American justice system.

    Next up…people who hate America suggesting this guy shouldn’t be tried in our Justice System.

  4. anjin-san says:

    Just had Fox News on the TV for the first time in years. It was interesting to watch them struggling to spin this into a negative for Obama.

    The lead story had Obama “signing off” on the mission, which struck me as an attempt to suggest a passive role for him. Certainly there was none of the triumphant language “the Commander In Chief ordered our forces” that we saw Fox use when discussing Bush.

  5. Moosebreath says:

    Clearly this was timed to distract attention from the scandal that is Benghazi.

    (takes off Fox News commentator’s hat).

  6. C. Clavin says:
  7. al-Ameda says:

    Darrell Issa needs to expand the House Benghazi investigation in order to find out why Obama didn’t notify Congress that the administration was looking for those responsible for the Benghazi attacks.

    (of course, House Republicans believe that the primary suspect is Hillary Clinton.)

  8. beth says:

    @C. Clavin: From your linked article:

    The session, as usual, quickly moved beyond the specifics of the assaults that left four Americans dead to accusations about the Muslim Brotherhood infiltrating the Obama administration, President Obama funding jihadists in their quest to destroy the United States, Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton attempting to impose Sharia blasphemy laws on Americans and Al Jazeera America being an organ of “enemy propaganda.”

    They really have lost their minds, haven’t they?

  9. humanoid.panda says:

    Clearly, this is just a ploy to distract us from #BENGHAZI

  10. stonetools says:

    Man, Obama sure has a way of confusing his enemies.
    The right wing narrative of “Obama doesn’t care about the murders of four American heroes dead at Benghazi” , so carefully cultivated for 21 months, now goes up in smoke. Back to the drawing board, Graham, Ayotte, Fox News, right wing talk radio, Malkin and the rest of the Right Wing BS Machine.
    Also shows liberals that maybe, just maybe, Obama’s got this. Time to come back off the ledge.
    Breaking: Fox News is trying to recover by saying, “The raid was suspiciously timed to coincide with HRC’s book tour”! If that’s the best they can do…

  11. beth says:

    @stonetools: I can just hear it now – Obama put our brave soldiers at risk by waiting to do the raid until HRC was scheduled to go on Fox News. Notice none of the critics of this administration have commented yet – the talking points haven’t been out there long enough yet. I give them 30 minutes.

  12. anjin-san says:

    More than ever, I’m convinced that cable news has turned out to be a bad thing. My mother is certain that we are on the verge of war with Russia over Ukraine, and she goes on at length about how “it seems like the world is more dangerous than ever.” Mind you, she has lived through the depression, WW2, and the cold war.

    I don’t think did much to put her mind at ease when I told her that the world is essentially at peace by historic standards, and suggested that she skip watching cable news for a while.

  13. OzarkHillbilly says:

    I told you he was the Illuminati. He has been holding this raid back until just the right moment to distract the American populace from the real crime that is…. I forget, what is the real crime today? LOIS LERNER’S E-MAILS!!! Whew…It is so hard to keep track these days.

  14. Surreal American says:

    What are the chances of the Benghazi suspect being granted immunity by Trey Gowdy for possible testimony against Obama?

  15. C. Clavin says:

    @beth:
    Don’t it always seem to go
    That you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone

  16. al-Ameda says:

    @beth:

    …… attempting to impose Sharia blasphemy laws on Americans and Al Jazeera America being an organ of “enemy propaganda.”

    Oh crap, I’d better get my divorce papers filed and plan my Gay Wedding really soon – I don’t think Sharia Law is going to allow me to remarry as Gay, right?

  17. C. Clavin says:
  18. MM2 says:

    This will turn into ‘Obama the Dictator acted unilaterally and refused to let the house finish gathering all the facts”.

  19. C. Clavin says:

    So when is HRC on Fox?
    That should be fascinating…even before this news .

  20. mantis says:

    Thanks, Obama.

  21. walt moffett says:

    Should make for an interesting criminal trial (and inevitable appeals).

  22. Neil Hudelson says:

    Man, Obama will do anything for attention, amiright?

  23. anjin-san says:

    Nothing about this story so far on Red State, Ace of Spades, Hot Air or Malkin. Desperately seeking spin..

    foxnews.com has pushed it down from the lead story position on their homepage to the second tier. Fascinating. For the last two years if a cat farted in Benghazi, Fox ran screaming headlines. Now they are not so eager to talk about it.

  24. C. Clavin says:

    @anjin-san:
    And thus the OTB resident conspiracy theorists are conspicuous by their absence…waiting to be told what to think, no doubt.

  25. Tom Hilton says:

    @stonetools:People who really care about the murders of four American heroes dead in Benghazi are 100% focused on parsing every draft of what the State Department said after the fact, and don’t waste their time on trivial details like who actually planned or executed the operation.

  26. wr says:

    @anjin-san: “For the last two years if a cat farted in Benghazi, Fox ran screaming headlines. Now they are not so eager to talk about it.”

    And by some astonishing coincidence, Jenos — aka Captain Benghazi — has suddenly forgotten how to use a keyboard.

    I’m sure once the spinners have decided on their spin, the cutting and pasting will begin.

  27. MikeSJ says:

    Well, I know one thing for sure!

    This is good news for John McCain.

  28. anjin-san says:

    .

  29. Jeremy R says:

    @Doug:

    Additionally, it could possibly also lead to some definitive evidence regarding many of the questions surrounding the attack itself, such as the extent to which it was pre-planned or, as the Administration has long suggested, a largely spontaneous attack that took advantage of protests in the wider Arab world.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/18/world/middleeast/apprehension-of-ahmed-abu-khattala-may-begin-to-answer-questions-on-assault.html

    Mr. Abu Khattala told other Libyans in private conversations during the night of the attack that he was moved to attack the diplomatic mission to take revenge for an insult to Islam in an American-made online video.

    An earlier demonstration venting anger over the video outside the American Embassy in Cairo had culminated in a breach of its walls, and it dominated Arab news coverage. Mr. Abu Khattala told both fellow Islamist fighters and others that the attack in Benghazi was retaliation for the same insulting video, according to people who heard him.

  30. mantis says:

    @Jeremy R:

    Yeah, well, Khattala was just covering for his good buddy Obama.

  31. Tillman says:

    @C. Clavin: @wr: Ugh. How about we keep in mind that people have lives off the Internet and won’t necessarily respond in a timely fashion, and keep from interpreting that lack of timely response as cowardice or something else?

  32. OzarkHillbilly says:

    @mantis: A thumbs up for making the obvious statement that went right past me.

  33. Eric Florack says:

    @Rob in CT: since the lamestream was conducting interviews with the guy in a public resturant less than a week after the attacks,its kinda hard to argue that they were trying to find him. Indeed, the spetre of OJ looking on every golf course in the country for his wifes killer seems more credible.

  34. OzarkHillbilly says:

    Gee, I wonder how some certain people will react? After all, Bush thought going after the main man behind 9/11 was a waste of time. Now here we have Obama getting Osama and then he gets Khattala as well?

    You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d think the man actually cared. Good thing I have FOX to tell me what I should think…..

    FOX? What should I think? FOX??? Tell me, please!!! I am lost without those voices telling me what to think!

  35. OzarkHillbilly says:

    @Eric Florack: Or Bush looking under tables for WMD?

    Come back when you are ready for prime time. Right now you aren’t even laughably inadequate.

  36. anjin-san says:

    Jenos poster on another thread a short while ago. Given the fact that he has spent the last two years taking almost constant victory laps on the subject of Benghazi, I think his absence here today is noteworthy.

    At any rate, we seem to have an emerging meme from the right. “The timing is suspicious”, and “It’s a distraction.” You would think that since they have been pushing the deaths of four Americans in Benghazi as one of the worst tragedies America has ever suffered, there would be some real joy that one of the perpetrators now faces punishment. Not so.

    It seems that it really has been about politics, not justice, since the very beginning.

  37. anjin-san says:

    @ Florack

    the spetre of OJ looking on every golf course in the country for his wifes killer seems more credible.

    My God, you sound like a bitter, aging crank.

    We have heard a lot from you and your ilk about the vast damage done to America in Benghazi, and the torment of the families of the victims. If you truly feel deeply about this, wise cracks on the subject seem highly inappropriate. You really are a nasty piece of work

  38. Hal_10000 says:

    @Jeremy R:

    So … not a “spontaneous” attack resulting from a protest that got out of control.

  39. Eric Florack says:

    @anjin-san: Oh, spare me the croc tears.
    The fact is absent the political consequences the Democrats prevailing attitude was, “what difference does it make?” To now complain *I* am being insensitive labels you as desperate at least.

    No matter how the WH spins this, it still comes down to them taking 2 years to land this bastard, and CBS less than 72 hours. theres no way this “too little too late” effort makes Benghazi go away, politically, which clearly is the intent.Its not going to wash.

  40. wr says:

    @Tillman: “Ugh. How about we keep in mind that people have lives off the Internet and won’t necessarily respond in a timely fashion, and keep from interpreting that lack of timely response as cowardice or something else?”

    People? Sure. Jenos? He’s been leaving messages on other threads all day. And he has a habit of magically disappearing when proven wrong, only to magically reappear days later repeating all the crap that got him laughed off the internet.

    But okay, I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.. He’s far too busy on other threads giving Obama wise counsel on the WPA.

  41. anjin-san says:

    @ Florack

    the Democrats prevailing attitude was, “what difference does it make?”

    If you exist in a right wing fantasy land, sure. Have you seen Tinkerbelle or the Dormouse in there?

    it still comes down to them taking 2 years to land this bastard,

    Hmm. How long did it take Bush to land Bin Laden, and how loudly did you complain about the delay?

    theres no way this “too little too late” effort makes Benghazi go away, politically

    Again, in right wing fever dreams, sure. The rest of the country understands that this was not the first time people died serving their country in a dangerous place, and it will not be the last. BTW, I certainly remember your “This is war, men die in war (shrug)” attitude towards Iraq casualties.

  42. anjin-san says:

    @ Florack

    And while we are complaining about how long it took Obama to get the bad guy, let’s keep in mind that just a short while after 9.11, Bush told us Bin Laden was not a priority, and that he was not that concerned about him. He also broke up the unit that was pursuing Bin Laden.

    And he never did get him.

    Fast forward to Big Bad John McCain in the 2008 debates, telling us we could not go after Bin Laden because it might upset Pakistan.

    I recall no outrage from the right over these rather shocking events.

    It’s worth noting that in the same debate, Obama said he would make going after OBL a top priority. Today, Bin Laden sleeps with the fishes, and a measure of justice for the thousands of Americans who were murdered on 9.11 has been extracted.

  43. Eric Florack says:

    and killing Bin Laden did what, exactly@anjin-san?
    did it put AQ on the run as Obama claimed?

    Oh, and by the way… I think we may have a reason Obama and company were so interested in pushing the meme that it was a protest over a You tube vid…. turns out, the vid was created by the same folks that created the Obamacare website.

    http://shoebat.com/2014/06/17/company-botched-obamacare-website-tied-benghazi-video/

  44. anjin-san says:

    @ Florack

    and killing Bin Laden did what, exactly@anjin-san?

    I realize that justice has no meaning for you, unless making noises about it somehow supports you in your pursuit of the expedience of the moment. You do not have to remind me.

  45. wr says:

    @Eric Florack: “and killing Bin Laden did what, exactly?
    did it put AQ on the run as Obama claimed?”

    So let me just confirm I have today’s right wing thinking down:

    Lois Lerner, who led an agency which insisted that groups that seemed to be primary political needed to be investigated to see if they deserved tax breaks meant for non-political groups, is the greatest villain on earth. Her life needs to be torn apart, and she should go to jail.

    Osama Bin-Laden, who planned the biggest terrorist attack in US history which cost 3000 American lives, four jet planes, and billions of dollars in direct damage and uncountable dollars in economic ramifications, was just some kind of minor nuisance, and who really cares what happened to him.

    That where your loathing of a black man in the White House has taken the right today?

  46. Rafer Janders says:

    @Eric Florack:

    and killing Bin Laden did what, exactly

    You are a disgusting, bitter, un-American little man.

  47. Rafer Janders says:

    @Tillman:

    How about we keep in mind that people have lives off the Internet and won’t necessarily respond in a timely fashion, and keep from interpreting that lack of timely response as cowardice or something else?

    People? Sure. But not him. The man’s a coward, Donnie.

  48. anjin-san says:

    @ Rafer Janders

    I think that bithead has forgotten the many “Oh God, oh please, don’t let Osama get meeeeeeeee” rants he unleashed here in the wake of 9.11. Now I’m not saying that 9.11 was not a terrifying event for everyone, but he was so publicly craven that you would think he would be sending Obama Valentine’s Day cards for ordering the mission that took OBL out.

  49. Eric Florack says:

    @anjin-san: Bush was correct, anjin.
    we are fighting not an individual, but an idea.
    an idea, whose adherents have a rather different view of justice than we.
    You still seem to have some problems understanding that concept.

  50. anjin-san says:

    @ Florak

    an idea, whose adherents have a rather different view of justice than we.

    I don’t know what your concept of justice is, but when somebody attacks my country, I want his ass.

    Please don’t conflate your sick notion of what justice is with mine. All you are interested in is team sports.

  51. anjin-san says:

    @ Florack

    BTW, if we are fighting “an idea” and not individuals, why do you give a rat’s ass that it took two years to capture Ahmed Abu Khattala, or if we captured him at all? After all, killing Bin Laden was meaningless, according to you.

    You don’t care of course, except that you think you can use it against the President. And you would have cared very much about OBL’s death, had gone down on Bush’s watch.

    Rafer has it right. You are simply revolting and un-American.

  52. C. Clavin says:

    @Tillman:
    I appreciate your point…but the conspiracy theorist in question has commented on another thread. So yeah…crickets from Mr. BenGHAZi!!!!!!!!!

  53. mantis says:

    @Eric Florack:

    Bush was correct, anjin. we are fighting not an individual, but an idea.

    Well Bush had 7 years to defeat that idea and failed. The idea was just sitting at a cafe, drinking tea. I guess Bush didn’t really want to win. Probably a sekrit Muslim.

  54. Rob in CT says:

    Of course we’re fighting ideas. We’re also fighting the people who hold, espouse, and act on those ideas.

    Look, folks, it’s Florack. He’s a smart person’s idea of what a dumb person is.

  55. jukeboxgrad says:

    Jeremy R citing NYT:

    Khattala told both fellow Islamist fighters and others that the attack in Benghazi was retaliation for the same insulting video, according to people who heard him

    And this was also reported a long time ago. Reuters, 10/18/12:

    Libyan Islamist says he was at U.S. consulate during attack … Abu Khattala is being investigated as a suspect in the Benghazi consulate attacks … “The film which insulted the Prophet was a direct attack on our values and if America wants good relations with the Muslim world it needs to do so with respect,” Abu Khattala said. “If they want to do it with force, they will be met with force.”

  56. C. Clavin says:

    @Eric Florack:
    Bush was correct…and then he confirmed their idea…and made it even worse.

  57. wr says:

    @anjin-san: “If you exist in a right wing fantasy land, sure. Have you seen Tinkerbelle or the Dormouse in there?”

    Okay, I’ll admit that the dormouse is part of the Tea Party, but Tinkerbelle a Republican? Never!

  58. Grewgills says:

    @wr:

    Tinkerbelle a Republican? Never!

    She was selfish, jealous, and trapped in her own magical thinking…