Obama Deplores Killing of US Ambassador to Libya

Slogans are sprayed on walls inside the US consulate, one day after armed men stormed the place during a protest over a film they said offended Islam. EPA/BGNES

Official US and Libyan sources have confirmed Wednesday that US ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens, together with 3 other diplomatic employees have been killed in the Tuesday attack against the American consulate in Benghazi.

US President Barack Obama has issued a statement denouncing the attack, saying that Stevens "was a courageous and exemplary representative of the US."

"I strongly condemn the outrageous attack on our diplomatic facility in Benghazi, which took the lives of four Americans," said the American President.

The Tuesday incident unfolded when an angry crowd marched at the US consulate in Benghazi outraged at a US online film considered insulting to the Prophet Mohammed.

Libya's Deputy Interior Minister Wanis al-Sharif said that consulate security staff opened fire when they heard gunfire outside the mission, which led to escalation of tension and the premises being stormed.

The consulate was then ransacked and burned, being left in a dilapidated condition.

Libyan citizens were also killed during the attack.

The Libyan authorities have also strongly condemned the incident as a "criminal and cowardly act", saying that Stevens was a friend of Libya, and promising to bring perpetrators to justice.

The last time an American ambassador was killed by terrorists was in 1979, when the envoy to Afghanistan, Adolph Dubs, was kidnapped and killed during an attempt to rescue him, recalls the CNN.

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