CIA operators were denied request for help during Benghazi attack, sources say

Cool. So...correct me if I'm wrong...but it looks like we agree on the following.

1. Chris Stevens and CIA buddies were not innocents in the equation.
2. SOMEBODY was giving guns and money to Libyans.
3. Irrespective of where said guns and money are sourced from...Stevens certainly appears to be the guy on the ground who was in charge of trafficking them.

So...let's ask ourselves who are all the possible or likely players who could ultimately be sourcing the items in question? Keep in mind...that even the most incompetent bureaucrat, banker, or intelligence agency would no doubt have used at least a couple of different shell entities as middle men to distance themselves from the transaction(s). Here's what my list looks like (in no specific order):

1. The US government, with the Obama Administrations full knowledge, consent, and approval.
2. The US government...who decided to let the Obama Administration in on the secret a couple days after the chaos really started in Libya.
3. The CIA or any of the other 72 different US intelligence agencies...most of which we know NOTHING about. (Note: I consider these to be separate from "the government" since they occupy a weird grey space between government, corporation, and the military and are not governed nor addressed by the Constitution as a branch of "government"...despite frequently acting as all three).
4. Somebody ELSE'S government or intelligence agencies.
5. NATO either acting autonomously or with intelligence agency support of some kind.
6. Corporate mercenary forces. Let's face it...a Middle East that is in constant chaos with ever-changing governments means lower oil production and nice high prices. Given that oil companies now have their own standing armies...I think it would be downright foolish to rule this one out.
7. Arab terrorist organizations of some kind. Yes...Ghaddaffi himself was a terrorist...but the last time I checked the number one killer of mobsters is OTHER MOBSTERS...right?
8. ????

Can you think of any other ones?

When we really start rattling off ALL of the possibilities...we start to get a pretty complex picture of the events...don't we?

Originally posted by milominderbinder
Cool. So...correct me if I'm wrong...but it looks like we agree on the following.

8. ????
Can you think of any other ones?
When we really start rattling off ALL of the possibilities...we start to get a pretty complex picture of the events...don't we?

I have a few questions to add to your well thought out list:

8. Does the US government presently have troops secretly stationed in Jordan?
9. Did the president, the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and CIA Director General Petraeus and others have pre - ordained information regarding upcoming events, and were they watching those events as they unfolded in real time? If so who else watched it unfold and who else knows now?
10. Given the fact that presidential candidates get special TS security briefings - does Governor Romney now know all of what happened?
11. How did the "stand down order"(s) come to be and who gave them? Given what we know now about the 9/11 attacks we can see that there was NO attempt to even try to save to save our people in Libya, that we didn’t do anything to rescue them. In fact whoever gave the “stand down(s)” order to our forces at the annex in Benghazi is responsible for the actual killing of ambassador Stevens and Sean Smith because it’s highly likely that the small force from the Annex could have disrupted the attack and likely saved Stevens and Smith.

I want to thank everyone who is participating in this quest for the truth.. I am for the most part someone who just posts up interesting news pieces, so I don't get to much into conspiratorial aspects (not that I don't think that way), and I appreciate everyone adding the conspiracy angles... which.. if true.. kinda explains why the President's opponent suddenly went quiet on the subject.. and would start to clear up the fog of why this tragic attack is only being pursued by a few folks..

Have to give credit to CNN for releasing the docs found, CBS for breaking the Emails, Jake Tapper from ABC for asking questions, and to FNC for continuing to dig...

There is more to this, and while I am on the low rung and just want answers about the handling of the attack, you folks here are providing food for thought.. I appreciate that.

I understand some will look at this politically, but I want you to know that I am trying my best to avoid the noise, and just provide what hits me as a potential piece of a puzzle we may never complete.

Thank you.



Back on topic.. in an earlier post I offered up some news on the new Libyan gov't.. seems they had an incident today ... here's a snippet of the article that relates..

Protesters delay vote on new Libyan Cabinet

...The proposed Cabinet gives the interior and defense portfolios to ministers from Libya's second largest city, Benghazi, and reserves at least two posts for ministers from the third largest city, Misrata. Two proposed ministers are women. The protesters named the proposed foreign minister and religious endowment ministers as linked to Gadhafi's regime...

bold=mine


Proposed Foreign Minister... is Libya's ambassador to the United States according to my previous post on the changing of the gov't in Libya...


Could be something to chew on as we attempt to piece this puzzle together..

reply to post by JacKatMtn


Wrabbit2000 posted an article on this page that many of you following this thread will find interesting. There is information there that I had not heard before and I've followed this closely.

reply to post by MsAphrodite


Thanks, the more info the better...

If there is a venue that can try to piece this together it's the folks here... despite our inherent differences, we do have a common goal for truth.. At least that is why I have been here for so long..

While we can battle bitch and whine on alot of topics, for the most part we just want answers..

Hell, I think the media needs some of you folks here to help them do their damn job! /rant

Woah... Bolton on Greta's show tonight freely discussing alot of what you folks have been covering here...

The reveal of a CIA outpost in Benghazi, and the reasons why it was there..

mentioned the whole buyback deal of the anti aircraft weapons, and the speculation of them being transferred to the Syrian rebels...

Bolton was saying Khaddafi weapons, Greta challenged that aspect. were they US supplied weapons.. etc etc...

Could be me, but that segment confirmed much of the suspicions folks here have been debating for awhile now..

I hope that someone can post a link to that segment soon... I am keeping my eyes out for the release...

I just found this on a military site blackfive.net. Here is an excerpt. I think this too is quite significant. Here is a snippet.

Having spent a good bit of time nursing a GLD (ground Laser Designator) in several garden spots around the world, something from the report jumped out at me. One of the former SEALs was actively painting the target. That means that Specter WAS ON STATION! Probably an AC130U. A ground laser designator is not a briefing pointer laser. You do not "paint" a target until the weapons system/designator is synched; which means that the AC130 was on station. Only two places could have called off the attack at that point; the WH situation command (based on POTUS direction) or AFRICOM commander based on information directly from the target area. If the AC130 never left Sigonella (as Penetta says) that means that the Predator that was filming the whole thing was armed. If that SEAL was actively "painting" a target; something was on station to engage! And the decision to stand down goes directly to POTUS!

See more here.

Originally posted by MsAphrodite
I just found this on a military site blackfive.net. Here is an excerpt. I think this too is quite significant. Here is a snippet.

Having spent a good bit of time nursing a GLD (ground Laser Designator) in several garden spots around the world, something from the report jumped out at me. One of the former SEALs was actively painting the target. That means that Specter WAS ON STATION! Probably an AC130U. A ground laser designator is not a briefing pointer laser. You do not "paint" a target until the weapons system/designator is synched; which means that the AC130 was on station. Only two places could have called off the attack at that point; the WH situation command (based on POTUS direction) or AFRICOM commander based on information directly from the target area. If the AC130 never left Sigonella (as Penetta says) that means that the Predator that was filming the whole thing was armed. If that SEAL was actively "painting" a target; something was on station to engage! And the decision to stand down goes directly to POTUS!

See more here.

Errr question exactly what rounds require laser designation that could be fired from an AC-130?
I have been out of the military for a few years however I can’t remember there ever being guided rounds from AC-130s. When I was in if you called in fire from one of those you needed a pretty wide distance between you and the intended target area.

If things have changed please enlighten.

Washington Post Opinion piece...:

Lingering questions about Benghazi


The attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi has become a political football in the presidential campaign, with all the grandstanding and misinformation that entails. But Fox News has raised some questions about the attack that deserve a clearer answer from the Obama administration.

Fox’s Jennifer Griffin reported Friday that CIA officers in Benghazi had been told to “stand down” when they wanted to deploy from their base at the annex to repel the attack on the consulate, about a mile away. Fox also reported that the CIA officers requested military support when the annex came under fire later that night but that their request had been denied.

Good to see more media wondering the same things we are here on ATS..

Originally posted by Grimpachi

Originally posted by MsAphrodite
I just found this on a military site blackfive.net. Here is an excerpt. I think this too is quite significant. Here is a snippet.

Having spent a good bit of time nursing a GLD (ground Laser Designator) in several garden spots around the world, something from the report jumped out at me. One of the former SEALs was actively painting the target. That means that Specter WAS ON STATION! Probably an AC130U. A ground laser designator is not a briefing pointer laser. You do not "paint" a target until the weapons system/designator is synched; which means that the AC130 was on station. Only two places could have called off the attack at that point; the WH situation command (based on POTUS direction) or AFRICOM commander based on information directly from the target area. If the AC130 never left Sigonella (as Penetta says) that means that the Predator that was filming the whole thing was armed. If that SEAL was actively "painting" a target; something was on station to engage! And the decision to stand down goes directly to POTUS!

See more here.

Errr question exactly what rounds require laser designation that could be fired from an AC-130?
I have been out of the military for a few years however I can’t remember there ever being guided rounds from AC-130s. When I was in if you called in fire from one of those you needed a pretty wide distance between you and the intended target area.

If things have changed please enlighten.

I've never had experience with an AC-130 but I did direct an AC-47 fire support mission one night when my company was being probed by a battalion of NVA on a ridge line called Tam Boi just inside the Laotian border in the Ashau Valley.... Once they identify the friendlies by way of a strobe light and description of the direction the enemy is in relation to the strobe light they dropped parachute flares to light everything up... The enemy had encircled us so the gunship shot the hell out of everything outside our perimeter... They were very accurate and didn't hit one of us... We allowed them to carry off their dead and wounded until after sunrise and them moved on toward our objective.... I am sure that with the technological advancements in the last 44 years the AC-130 is capable much more precision firing without the need to drop parachute flares....

Going to sleep now, but just found this and thought it worth posting. Very interesting analysis of each of the different department denials and the specific wording they are using.

Originally posted by JacKatMtn
Washington Post Opinion piece...:

Lingering questions about Benghazi


The attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi has become a political football in the presidential campaign, with all the grandstanding and misinformation that entails. But Fox News has raised some questions about the attack that deserve a clearer answer from the Obama administration.

Fox’s Jennifer Griffin reported Friday that CIA officers in Benghazi had been told to “stand down” when they wanted to deploy from their base at the annex to repel the attack on the consulate, about a mile away. Fox also reported that the CIA officers requested military support when the annex came under fire later that night but that their request had been denied.

Good to see more media wondering the same things we are here on ATS..

JacKatMtn: Thanks for sharing that. I absolutely agree that it is important that the truth come out about Benghazi and be shouted from the rooftops before the election regardless of if it paints the President in a positive or negative light because in my opinion this is a question of leadership and an important factor for people in casting their ballot.

I am bracing myself for the endless comments about how that right-wing publication the Washington Post that unjustly targeted and brought down that hippie liberal Nixon cites Fox News in the article proving that its just a pre-election attack on Obama and would otherwise be a non-story because Fox and the Washington Post hate the President because he's black....

I write the above sarcastic paragraph because the first American Ambassador murdered in the line of duty since 1979 IS an important event that merits immediate investigation especially since there is so much contradictory information about the cause of the attack, the nature of the attack and what looks to be a well-planned cover-up by the administration. The call to investigate and reveal the truth is not being raised by just voices from the right, if you take the time to read the reporting you will see a bi-partisan call for the truth if for no other reason to honor those who were murdered that dedicated their life to foreign service.

Very interesting interview of Bing West (former Asst Secy of Defense Reagan Admin), from the Greta Van Susteren show last night..

He lays out the chain of command, offers questions, and adds that the current Sec of State Clinton did what she could to help that day.

I checked YT and couldn't find it there, will post a link when / if I find it, but for now you can see the 7 1/2 minute interview here:

Bing West Interview

Found an interesting clip, not sure who the guy is, so just something to ponder...

He says that the compound wasn't a Consulate, but a meeting place for the US, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar..

Am I permitted to post this more than once? I hope so !

There are just times when an image tells the whole story!

Originally posted by Vitruvian
Am I permitted to post this more than once? I hope so !

There are just times when an image tells the whole story!

Well at least the media showed how hand's-on he was with this Sandy storm and made a huge deal that Obama went to the Red Cross operations center... Do you know how far the White House is from the Red Cross emergency operations center? A little over 100 yards...

I think it speaks volumes when you think of it this way:

When the President faced a situation where his actions could directly impact if American would live or die and possibly save lives, he chose to do nothing and then lied to the American people and engaged in a cover-up....

When the President faced a situation where his actions could do nothing to save lives (he couldn't change the course of the storm), he does everything he can to showcase himself being hand's-on...

On a side note, I think it is great that FEMA is directing the millions without power and tons of mobile towers being out of service to go to a web site to get help and not offering a phone number or other way to get help...

reply to post by JacKatMtn


In regards to the Benghazi compound being a Consulate..

I did a search on the State Dept's Libya website, and got zero return for a search for Benghazi consulate

A google news search from Jan to Sep 10 2012 resulted in nothing about a Benghazi consulate

Jan 2, 2012 – Sep 10, 2012

fishy?

Was there a NSC meeting at the WH on Sept 10th?

What was Obama told at the September 10, 2012, NSC meeting on ‘9/11 threats’?

On the White House Web site, the president’s calendar for September 10, 2012 — the day before the Benghazi, Libya, attack — is blank and and the daily press guidance says “The President has no public events scheduled.”

But the president did have an important meeting that day. In an e-mail exchange over President Obama’s record of skipping his daily intelligence meetings, National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor wrote me the following:

I’d also note that this focus on just the PDB and not the countless other NSC meetings the President has each week really misses the point. For example, the President had a briefing with the Principals Committee to review 9/11 threats and mitigation efforts on September 10th. Seems like a relevant data point for you[r] piece. [Emphasis added].
The fact that “the President had a briefing with the Principals Committee to review 9/11 threats and mitigation efforts on September 10th” raises a whole host of new questions:

Seems so, here's the WH press release..about the meeting with no details..

www.whitehouse.gov...

Readout of the President’s Meeting with Senior Administration Officials on Our Preparedness and Security Posture on the Eleventh Anniversary of September 11th

Earlier today the President heard from key national security principals on our preparedness and security posture on the eve of the eleventh anniversary of September 11th. Over the past month, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism John Brennan has convened numerous meetings to review security measures in place. During the briefing today, the President and the Principals discussed specific measures we are taking in the Homeland to prevent 9/11 related attacks as well as the steps taken to protect U.S. persons and facilities abroad, as well as force protection. The President reiterated that Departments and agencies must do everything possible to protect the American people, both at home and abroad.

add WH press release

Originally posted by DOLCOTT

The major issue is our POTUS failed to send aid and support to american citizens under threat.

No. The major issue is that an illegal alien named Chris Stevens armed, funded, and orchestrated a civil war killing 50,000 civilians and continuing the policies of interventionism in the Middle East which has failed every single hour of every single day since 1948.

Besides...where's the "personal responsibility" in all of this. You said yourself they were "private contractors". They knew the risks...right? In fact, one of the biggest reasons I don't personally start any civil wars at all in the Middle East is to avoid inconvenient RPG attacks. Another reason is because I think that starting wars that kill 50,000 people at a crack is something that only a megalomaniacal psychopath would do.

These guys aren't "our troops". They were on the CIA payroll. Remember...the CIA are the same people who brought you the "intelligence" that got us involved in the Iraq war, armed the Afghan Mujahideen, lied to you about the Gulf of Tonkin incident, put the Assad family in power in Syria, armed and funded Saddam Hussein, and plays a large but vaguely defined "War on Drugs", continued looking for Bin Laden in Afghanistan for about 8 years after late-night comedians started joking about him being in Pakistan, and decided that torturing prisoners wasn't such a bad idea after all.

They aren't "innocent", they weren't "serving our country", "protecting us", and they certainly are NOT heros. The term "private contractor" is just a polite way of saying "mercenary"....and that's the BEST case scenario. If there is any truth to the items used to brag up how "wonderful" Chris Stevens was shortly after he died...then in terms of the body count...Stevens was a BIGGER TERRORIST THAN BIN LADEN WAS.

So tell me...how many 19 yr old kids and 30 yr old members of the reserves with families waiting back home would you have sent into the meat grinder to save these four mercenaries so they can go pull the same trick Syria next month?

After all...if we fail to arm, fund, and otherwise prop up brand-new dictators TODAY we'll run fresh out of people to invade TOMORROW. The world doesn't get dangerous enough all on its own, you know....it needs to be helped along. We aren't building those new fighter jets that render the pilots unconscious for no reason, you know.

reply to post by JacKatMtn

fishy?

With the exception of the actions of Tyrone Wood and Glen Doherty...

Just about everything in this story seems a little fishy.