Benghazi attack: Now Hillary Clinton hints Al Qaeda to blame for Libyan consulate assault | Mail Online

Now Hillary Clinton strongly hints that Libya consulate WAS attacked by Al Qaeda in humiliating back track

Secretary of State said Wednesday that she believes the attack could have strong ties to al Qaeda
White House press secretary Jay Carney also said they believed consulate attack was a 'terrorist' action
Libyan president Mohamed Magarief said that attacks were 'pre-planned'
U.S. ambassador Chris Stevens was killed along with fellow Americans Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty

PUBLISHED: 09:46 EST, 26 September 2012 | UPDATED: 12:03 EST, 27 September 2012

In a humiliating admission, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said today that there was an explicit link between the al Qaeda network in North Africa and the deadly attacks on the U.S. consulate in Libya, backtracking from what the State Department had said previously.

Speaking at a Security Council meeting at the United Nations, Mrs Clinton said an Algerian-founded branch of the al Qaeda network was situated in the area, using their location to plan and execute attacks, like the one in Benghazi on September 11.

This goes directly against the initial statements of the White House and President Obama, who acknowledged that the consulate attack, which killed Libyan ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans, was a terrorist attack but that al Qaeda’s involvement's was unclear.

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Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said today that there was an explicit link between terror network al Qaeda and the September 11 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi

Mrs Clinton, pictured earlier attending a UN Security Council meeting on peace and security in the Middle East during the general assembly

The secretary of state did not cite any new information to make these claims, the New York Times reported.

Meanwhile, the White House told reporters today that President Obama now believes the assault on the embassy was the work of a terrorist attack.

‘It is our view as an administration, the president’s view, that it was a terrorist attack,’ press secretary Jay Carney said, according to ABC News.

The administration had initially hinted that the violent and fiery attacks were fuelled by rage from an anti-Islam film.

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Mr Carney said that ‘there was no reason (the president) chose the words he did beyond trying to provide a full explanation of his views and his assessment that we need to await further information that the investigation will uncover.’

This comes as Libyan president Mohamed Magarief claimed the deadly 9/11 anniversary attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi was undoubtedly a 'pre-planned act of terrorism.'

The comments follow repetitive claims by the U.S. government that the attack last month that killed ambassador Chris Stevens was spontaneous, and was sparked by an anti-Islam film produced in California.

The White House said that President Obama, pictured today at Kent State University in Ohio, has now acknowledged the deadly attacks to be the work of terrorists

But President Magarief quashed the idea the assault on the consulate was prompted by the movie, adding that he has 'no doubt' it was a premeditated act of terrorism targeting American citizens.

'It's a pre-planned act of terrorism,' he told NBC's Ann Curry, adding that the anti-Islam film had 'nothing to do with this attack.'

The Libyan president's remarks also come as a report in The Daily Beast claims U.S. intelligence agencies knew within 24 hours that the fire fight at the Benghazi consulate building was orchestrated by al Qaeda-affiliates hiding in Eastern Libya.

Unnamed officials said they had even tracked down the location of one suspect within this time, using social media.

In the interview with NBC, Magarief said the fact the attack occurred on September 11 was hugely significant, and provided further evidence that it was orchestrated by extremists rather than spontaneous protesters.

Terrorism: President Mohamed Magarief, pictured, said he had 'no doubt' the attack on the U.S. Consulate was pre-planned

Terrorism: Libyan President Mohamed Magarief, speaking to NBC, said he had 'no doubt' the attack on the U.S. Consulate was pre-planned

Significant: Magarief, pictured right with Ann Curry, said the fact the attack occurred on September 11 was of great significance

He added that there were no protesters at the consulate before the assault, which he told the TV station came in two waves - the first involving rocket-propelled grenades on the consulate then with mortars at a safe house.

'Reaction (to the anti-Islam film) should have been six months earlier. So it was postponed until the 11th of September. They chose this date to carry a certain message.'

-Libyan president Mohamed Magarief

The U.S. government initially denied that the attacks were planned, instead linking them directly to protests over the film. It wasn't until late last week that the Obama administration formally acknowledged the deadly 9/11 assault was in fact a terrorist attack.

Magarief said the video had been available for months before the Benghazi attack and therefore wasn't the catalyst.

'Reaction should have been, if it was genuine, should have been six months earlier. So it was postponed until the 11th of September,' he told NBC. 'They chose this date, 11th of September to carry a certain message.'

When asked by Curry what his evidence was that the attack was pre-planned, he said: 'Number one, is choosing the date, 11th of September has all the significance. If we take the facts about the way it was executed we can see there is enough proof that it is a pre-planned act of terrorism.'

Attack: The four men died after riots over an anti-Islamic film stormed past the U.S. embassy in Benghazi

Four U.S. citizens died in the attack on the consulate in Benghazi, including the U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens, as well as former Navy SEALs

The U.S. Consulate in Benghazi was set alight during a protest by an armed group on the anniversary of September 11

He said it was too early for him to give the minute details of the attack but he said the perpetrators must have had experience.

'It was launched with a high degree of accuracy which means the perpetrators must have some kind of exercise on how to hit and how to launch these acts,' he said.

Magarief said he thinks that al Qaeda was behind the assault but he added there was so far no direct evidence to prove that is the case.

'As the investigation progresses that is the likelihood we will reach that,' he said.

According to The Daily Beast, U.S. intelligence agencies knew within 24 hours that al Qaeda-affiliated operatives were behind the deadly assault.

Three separate unnamed officials told the website that early information was enough to show the attack was planned and orchestrated by groups in Eastern Libya linked to al Qaeda.

They said U.S. intelligence agencies developed leads on four of the participants within 24 hours of the fire fight that killed Stevens as well as information management officer Sean Smith and security personnel Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty.

Destruction: A man walks in the rubble of the consulate after the attack that claimed four Americans

For one of the suspects, the U.S. agencies were able to track his location using social media within that time.

'We had two kinds of intelligence on one guy,' the official told The Daily Beast. 'We believe we had enough to target him.'

Another U.S. intelligence official told the website: 'There was very good information on this in the first 24 hours. These guys have a return address. There are camps of people and a wide variety of things we could do.'

A third U.S. intelligence official said he could not get into specific numbers 'but soon after the attack we had a pretty good bead on some individuals involved.'

The sources didn't reveal whether the agencies had targeted or arrested any of the suspected assailants, stressing that the complex investigation was continuing.

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