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| Picture taken on Aug. 26, 2012 shows Christopher Stevens, the U.S. ambassador in Libya, giving a speech in Tripoli. Christopher Stevens was confirmed to have died in Tuesday's conflict in Libya's eastern city of Benghazi, the pan-Arab Al Jazeera TV reported Wednesday. (Xinhua/Hamza Turkia) |
TRIPOLI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens is confirmed to have died in Tuesday's conflict in the U.S. consulate building in Libya's eastern city of Benghazi, Libyan officials said on Wednesday.
Hundreds of protesters, angered by an alleged U.S.-made movie that insults Prophet Mohammed, broke into the U.S. consulate building in Benghazi on Tuesday night, and set ablaze the building.
Wanis Sharef, a Libyan deputy interior minister in charge of the country's security affairs in the east, confirmed to media on Wednesday that the U.S. ambassador was killed.
The U.S. ambassador, who was on a short trip to Benghazi, died from suffocation as a result of smoke inhalation, as protestors set fire at the scene. Three staffers were also killed during the fierce clashes.
The bodies of the four killed U.S. diplomatic personnel will be transferred to Libya's capital of Tripoli, sources told Xinhua.
Stevens had served as the U.S. representative to Libya's National Transitional Council during last year's unrest that toppled former strongman Muammar Gaddafi before taking up the post as an ambassador in May.
U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday strongly condemned the fatal attack that killed the ambassador and three other Americans.
"I strongly condemn the outrageous attack on our diplomatic facility in Benghazi, which took the lives of four Americans," he said in a statement released by the White House.
Sharef told Xinhua that 12-18 people in the American consulate had been injured during Tuesday's attack, and that a total of 32 U. S. diplomatic personnel had been evacuated to safe place.
As Libya's Foreign Ministry and the General National Congress ( GNC) are expected to hold press conferences on the issue Wednesday night, GNC President Mohammed Maqrif has already apologized during a press conference in the capital Tripoli to the United States over the death of the ambassador, adding that no one will escape from punishment.
On Tuesday, several thousands of Egyptians also protested in front of the U.S. embassy in the capital Cairo against the same movie, allegedly sponsored by Americans but not by U.S. government or Hollywood industries.
Related:
Protesters storm U.S. consulate in Libya's Benghazi over insulting movie, 1 American killed
TRIPOLI, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- One American staff member from the U.S. consulate in Libya's eastern city of Benghazi was killed on Tuesday night after hundreds of protesters, angered by an alleged U.S.-made movie that insults the Prophet Mohammed, broke into the consulate building, a Libya's interior ministry official said.
Wanis Sharef, an assistant to Libya's interior minister, told Xinhua that the diplomats of the U.S. mission have been evacuated to avoid clashes with the protesters. Full story
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