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Libya Attack Linked To Al Qaeda, Clinton Suggests

Clinton Hints Al Qaeda Linked To Libya Consulate Attack
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A Libyan man walks in the rubble of the damaged U.S. consulate, after an attack that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens on the night of Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012, in Benghazi, Libya, Thursday, Sept. 13, 2012. The American ambassador to Libya and three other Americans were killed when a mob of protesters and gunmen overwhelmed the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, setting fire to it in outrage over a film that ridicules Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Ambassador Chris Stevens, 52, died as he and a group of embassy employees went to the consulate to try to evacuate staff as a crowd of hundreds attacked the consulate Tuesday evening, many of them firing machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades. (AP photo/Mohammad Hannon)

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hinted on Wednesday that the Sept. 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi may have been linked to al Qaeda affiliates.

According to the Christian Science Monitor, Clinton made the remarks at a U.N. meeting on instability in the Sahel, reportedly saying that violent extremist groups such as al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb are "working with other violent extremists to undermine the democratic transitions underway in North Africa, as we tragically saw in Benghazi.”

The New York Times reports that Clinton's remarks "did not offer any new evidence of a Qaeda link, and officials later said the question would be officially settled only after the F.B.I. completed a criminal inquiry, which could take months."

It was the first time Clinton has admitted any explicit al Qaeda link.

Meanwhile, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called the White House's response to the attack "unbelievable" on Thursday morning. CBS reports:

The senator maintained there is no way that it was a spontaneous attack. "Like they say, 'Come on honey, bring your mortars, we're going to a spontaneous demonstration," McCain said of the claims that the violence escalated from an impromptu demonstration outside of the consulate building.

The attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi killed U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.

Read the full story at the New York Times.

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Before You Go

Chris Stevens Photos
Chris Stevens, Christopher Prentice, Suleiman Fortias(01 of07)
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In this photo taken Monday, April 11, 2011, then U.S. envoy Chris Stevens, center, accompanied by British envoy Christopher Prentice, left, speaks to Council member for Misrata Dr. Suleiman Fortia, right, at the Tibesty Hotel where an African Union delegation was meeting with opposition leaders in Benghazi, Libya. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) (credit:AP)
Chris Stevens(02 of07)
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In this photo taken Monday, April 11, 2011, then U.S. envoy Chris Stevens attends meetings at the Tibesty Hotel where an African Union delegation was meeting with opposition leaders in Benghazi, Libya. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) (credit:AP)
Chris Stevens, Christopher Prentice, Suleiman Fortia(03 of07)
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In this photo taken Monday, April 11, 2011, then U.S. envoy Chris Stevens, center, accompanied by British envoy Christopher Prentice, left, speaks to Council member for Misrata Dr. Suleiman Fortia, right, at the Tibesty Hotel where an African Union delegation was meeting with opposition leaders in Benghazi, Libya. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) (credit:AP)
Chris Stevens(04 of07)
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In this photo taken Monday, April 11, 2011, then U.S. envoy Chris Stevens speaks to local media before attending meetings at the Tibesty Hotel where an African Union delegation was meeting with opposition leaders in Benghazi, Libya. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) (credit:AP)
Chris Stevens, Christopher Prentice(05 of07)
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In this Monday, April 11, 2011 file photo, U.S. envoy Chris Stevens, left, speaks with British envoy Christopher Prentice, right, in the lobby of the Tibesty Hotel where an African Union delegation was meeting with opposition leaders in Benghazi, Libya. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File) (credit:AP)
(06 of07)
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US diplomatic envoy to rebel-held Libya Chris Stevens (front row 2nd-R), Britain's diplomatic representative Christopher Prentice (L), and deputy chairman of the TNC Abdul Hafiz Ghoqa (2nd-L) listen as Agence France-Presse reporter Marc Burleigh (R) speaks during a memorial service for slain photojournalists Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros in Benghazi on April 21, 2011. (ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
(07 of07)
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Bristish and US envoys to Libyan rebels Christopher Prentice (L) and Chris Stevens attend a press conference of Libyan rebel leader Mustafa Abdul Jalil (not pictured) after his meeting with African head of states, in the eastern rebel stronghold of Benghazi, on April 11, 2011. (MARWAN NAAMANI/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
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