[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv class=\u0022ds-1col clearfix\u0022\u003E\n\n  \n\n  \n  \u003Cp\u003EThe initial coverage of the U.S. Consulate attack in Benghazi, Libya, that killed Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens blamed Ansar al-Sharia (AAS), with few reports linking AQIM to the operation.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times \u003C\/em\u003Ereported that the attack \u201cwas led by a brigade of Islamist fighters known as Ansar al-Sharia,\u201d noting that the group claimed it had not acted alone. The article made only one reference to al-Qaeda, indicating that \u201creports from some terrorism experts\u201d linking the \u201crecent death in drone strikes of senior Qaeda leaders, including Abu Yahya al-Libi, were unsupported.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EDavid D. Kirkpatrick and Steven Lee Myers, \u201cLibya Attack Brings Challenges for U.S.,\u201d \u003Cem\u003ENew York Times\u003C\/em\u003E, September 12, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2012\/09\/13\/world\/middleeast\/us-envoy-to-libya-is-reported-killed.html?pagewanted=all\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2012\/09\/13\/world\/middleeast\/us-envoy-to-libya-is-reported-killed.html?pagewanted=all\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EFor its part, CNN reported that a \u201cpro-al Qaeda\u201d group called the Imprisoned Omar Abdul Raham Brigades was the \u201cchief suspect\u201d in the attack, pointing out its involvement in previous attacks against the International Red Cross and the British ambassador\u2019s convoy in Benghazi. The article claimed that AAS \u201cwas responsible for organizing the demonstration outside the U.S. Consulate,\u201d but it did not clearly tie the Imprisoned Omar Abdul Raham Brigades to Ansar al-Sharia. Furthermore, the authors only brought AQIM into the story offhandedly, mentioning that a number of fighters from the group were operating in the town of Derna, Libya.\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003ENic Robertson, Paul Cruickshank, and Tim Lister, \u201cPro-Al Qaeda Group Seen behind Deadly Benghazi Attack,\u201d CNN, September 13, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2012\/09\/12\/world\/africa\/libya-attack-jihadists\/\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2012\/09\/12\/world\/africa\/libya-attack-jihadists\/\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EBut outlets were soon questioning whether AQIM played a larger role in the attacks. On September 28, Eli Lake wrote in the\u003Cem\u003E Daily Beast \u003C\/em\u003Ethat Ansar al-Sharia\u2019s militants had \u201cboasted to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb about the attack,\u201d while also citing one U.S. intelligence official who claimed that \u201cAAS operative[s] were subordinate to the mid-level AQIM members.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EEli Lake, \u201cIntercepts Show Attackers on U.S. Consulate in Benghazi Bragged to Al Qaeda,\u201d \u003Cem\u003EDaily Beast\u003C\/em\u003E, September 28, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022ttp:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/articles\/2012\/09\/28\/intercepts-show-attackers-on-u-s-consulate-in-benghazi-bragged-to-al-qaeda.html\u0022\u003Ettp:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/articles\/2012\/09\/28\/intercepts-show-attackers-on-u-s-consulate-in-benghazi-bragged-to-al-qaeda.html\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E In November 2012, Reuters reported comments from General Carter Ham, the head of the U.S. military\u2019s Africa Command, that \u201cvery likely that some of the terrorists who participated in the attack in Benghazi have at least some linkages to AQIM\u2026 That is not to say that it was AQIM which planned, or organized or led the activity, but clearly some of the individuals had some linkages.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003E\u201cU.S. Commander Says Benghazi Attacks Linked to Al Qaeda in Maghreb,\u201d Reuters, November 14, 2012, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/2012\/11\/14\/us-mali-usa-idUSBRE8AD0WF20121114\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/2012\/11\/14\/us-mali-usa-idUSBRE8AD0WF20121114\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to Ham\u2019s claims linking AQIM to the attack, CNN reported in March 2013 that a call \u201cwas made specifically to [Mokhtar Belmokhtar]\u201d after the attack in which the caller excitedly told the then-AQIM senior leader, \u201cCongratulations!\u201d The network noted, however, that there was \u201cno proof that the call was specifically about the attack,\u201d and likewise said that there was no proof that \u201c[Belmokhtar] directed or was involved in the Benghazi attack.\u201d\u003Cspan class=\u0022footnote\u0022\u003EPaul Cruickshank, Tim Lister and Nic Robertson, \u201cPhone Call Links Benghazi Attack to Al Qaeda Commander,\u201d CNN, March 5, 2013, \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2013\/03\/05\/world\/africa\/benghazi-al-qaeda\/\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2013\/03\/05\/world\/africa\/benghazi-al-qaeda\/\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n","dialogOptions":{"minWidth":850,"resizable":true,"modal":true,"title":"Benghazi"}},{"command":"doFootnotes"}]