Embassy Security Three Years After Benghazi

By Alex Tiersky

Alex Tiersky provides analysis for Congress on foreign policy management and global issues as part of the Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division of the Congressional Research Service.  Prior to joining CRS, Tiersky served as Director of the Defense and Security Committee of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, based in Brussels. He has also served as a Foreign Affairs Officer and Presidential Management Fellow at the U.S. Department of State.

On the night of September 11, 2012, four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, were killed in terrorist attacks at U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya. These attacks highlighted the highly volatile environments in which U.S. diplomatic personnel sometimes operate, and led to a period of sustained scrutiny of the measures in place to protect them.

The State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security organizes security for U.S. diplomats and the facilities they work in. In addition to the first layer of defense – the protective assets provided by host nations (under their Vienna Convention commitments) – U.S. diplomatic facilities are usually guarded by some mix of elements including locally-hired guards, Diplomatic Security agents, and sometimes U.S. Marine Corps Security Guard detachments.  

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