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(Image source: CNN)
BY HARUMENDHAH HELMY
ANCHOR ZACH TOOMBS
It looks like the first steps in what could be an unwelcome U.S. military operation on
foreign soil.
American officials are reportedly gathering intelligence on suspects
behind the attack that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans in Benghazi,
Libya. The so-called “target list” is being prepared in anticipation of possible
orders from President Barack Obama to strike.
CNN’s Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr says
the effort is still in the very preliminary stages.
“This is what they do. The CIA, the military commando units, they gather intelligence,
we know they have been doing that since the attack.”
The New York Times reports the possible mission could range anywhere from a drone strike to
a raid similar to the one that killed Osama bin Laden. The Times also says the Libyan
government isn’t going to be okay with any of that.
As the recent revolution brought “a surge in nationalism, the Libyan government has
opposed any unilateral American military action in Libya against the attackers.” But the
revolution has also left the government relying on “autonomous local militias to act as
the police, complicating any effort to detain the most obvious suspects.”
The news of the intelligence gathering comes as GOP lawmakers claim the Benghazi consulate
staff had asked for more security prior to the fatal attack.