2nd Benghazi Almost Happened Again Last Month
January 18, 2016
Daniel Greenfield
The aftermath of the illegal Obama/Hillary war in Libya has been a complete and utter disaster.
ISIS controls entire cities. Al Qaeda has its own major presence on the ground. And Obama's attempts to continue operating there using special forces almost led to another Benghazi.
The American Special Operations forces expected a warm welcome when they landed at the Libyan air base where an allied militia was stationed. Instead, armed men from another militia at the base threatened to detain the commandos, forcing the Americans to evacuate.
The episode, on Dec. 14, highlighted the difficulties faced by the Obama administration as it engages in a search across Libya to find armed groups that can act as a ground force against the country’s increasingly potent branch of the Islamic State... The search carries particular risks for the Obama administration, which once relied on local militias to help protect the American diplomatic compound in the northeastern city of Benghazi. They failed to provide protection when the compound was overrun by militants in September 2012, an attack that led to the deaths of the United States ambassador, J. Christopher Stevens, and three other Americans.
They not only "failed" to provide protection, they appeared to have worked with the attackers. Which isn't surprising as the local militias involved were all part of the Libyan intersection between the Muslim Brotherhood and Al Qaeda.
According to Libyan sources, the American personnel were disarmed by the local militias. Which means that the administration put American personnel into danger to provide "training" to Islamist militias, without authorizing them to defend themselves and nearly created another hostage situation or massacre. When Obama claims there are no boots on the ground, this is what he means.
When you watch 13 Hours, it's important to remember that nothing has changed. American personnel are still wandering around Libya without knowing who the bad guys are and without having the ability to defend themselves in many cases.
Libyan officials said the United States had longstanding ties with one of the militias stationed at Watiya, called Special Forces Battalion 22. A statement released by the battalion on Dec. 18 said that the United States had been training the unit since 2012.
The training of the battalion had previously taken place at another base, called Camp 27, west of Tripoli, but was interrupted in 2013 when another militia overran the camp, according to Col. Idris Mohamed Madi, the commander of the operations room at Al Watiya. Training resumed at Watiya about three months ago, he said.
When the Americans arrived last month, another militia stationed at Watiya, apparently unaware of the visit, “harassed” and attempted to arrest the Americans, according to Battalion 22.
And these are our "allies". Welcome to Obama's Libya.
http://www.frontpagemag.com/point/261516/2nd-benghazi-almost-happened-again-last-month-daniel-greenfield
