tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/benghazi-5661/articlesBenghazi – The Conversation2021-03-22T18:48:24Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1570412021-03-22T18:48:24Z2021-03-22T18:48:24ZTen years after the Arab Spring, Libya has another chance for peace<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390459/original/file-20210318-19-rjpl8o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=58%2C0%2C6429%2C4464&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Under tight security, Libyans mark the 10th anniversary of their 2011 uprising that led to the overthrow and killing of longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi in Martyrs Square, Tripoli, Libya. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Hazem Ahmed)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Ten years ago, <a href="https://www.un.org/press/en/2011/sc10200.doc.htm">the United Nation’s no-fly zone over Libya marked</a> the beginning of the Libyan revolution and <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-12796972">the West’s bombing campaign</a>. </p>
<p>I spent much of the war embedded with the <a href="http://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190210960.001.0001">fighters in Misrata, Libya’s third-largest city, studying the insurgency</a>. The fighting stopped with <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/21/world/africa/qaddafi-is-killed-as-libyan-forces-take-surt.html">the death of Col. Moammar Gadhafi, Libya’s ruler for four decades</a>. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, hope gave way to turmoil as Libyans watched <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/after-key-expiration-libya-has-no-western-recognized-government/2015/10/20/792e1a9c-773e-11e5-b9c1-f03c48c96ac2_story.html">duelling governments</a> and <a href="http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/de/about-us/highlights/highlight-after-the-fall.html">hundreds of armed groups</a> fight over the country’s oil riches. <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2020/1/22/why-peace-initiatives-in-libya-are-failing">Peace initiatives repeatedly failed</a> — until just recently.</p>
<p>On March 16, the 10th anniversary of the Arab Spring and NATO’S intervention, a <a href="https://www.csmonitor.com/World/2021/0310/With-interim-government-established-Libya-looks-for-unity">government uniting the east and west of Libya took power for the first time since 2014</a>. This opportunity is Libyans’ last and best chance for stability and prosperity. There are three reasons for hope, but they are equally compelling reasons to despair.</p>
<h2>1. Military victory impossible for either side</h2>
<p>In April 2019, the leader of Libya’s eastern militias,
<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27492354">Khalifa Haftar</a>, attacked Libya’s capital, Tripoli. <a href="https://www.libyaherald.com/2019/04/09/unsmil-postpones-ghadames-national-conference-until-conditions-are-right/">He wanted to take control before the Libyan National Congress could meet to set up elections</a>. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390461/original/file-20210318-13-zkdyo4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man with a moustache and suit and tie" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390461/original/file-20210318-13-zkdyo4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390461/original/file-20210318-13-zkdyo4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390461/original/file-20210318-13-zkdyo4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390461/original/file-20210318-13-zkdyo4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=419&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390461/original/file-20210318-13-zkdyo4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390461/original/file-20210318-13-zkdyo4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390461/original/file-20210318-13-zkdyo4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=527&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">In this August 2017 photo, Libyan militia commander Gen. Khalifa Haftar meets with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)</span></span>
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<p>At the time, he had the military advantage, <a href="https://www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-north-africa/north-africa/libya/averting-egyptian-military-intervention-libya">backed by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Russia and France</a> and <a href="https://www.mei.edu/publications/turning-tide-how-turkey-won-war-tripoli">wielding advanced drones and fighter aircraft</a>. Haftar was on the verge of victory despite efforts by armed groups from Tripoli, Misrata and Zintan to stop him. <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51003034">That was until Turkey intervened a few months ago</a> — turning the tide of the fighting and upsetting the military balance in Libya. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.crisisgroup.org/europe-central-asia/western-europemediterranean/turkey/257-turkey-wades-libyas-troubled-waters">Turkey wanted to check Russian and Egyptian power in the region and secure undersea drilling rights in the Mediterranean Sea. </a> Turkey’s intervention was decisive, leading to the retreat of <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/5/25/hundreds-more-russian-mercenaries-flee-western-libya-gna-forces">Haftar’s militias and Russia’s mercenaries.</a> </p>
<p>This defeat fundamentally altered Libyan politics. It became clear to Haftar and his backers that there was, for now at least, no military solution to Libya’s conflict. This stalemate turned the United Nations’ political and military dialogue into an actual negotiation for power and the future of Libya.</p>
<h2>2. The pandemic: A breaking point for Libyans</h2>
<p>Libyans are furious with their political class. It’s hard to overstate the hell Libyans have lived through over the past decade, and the pandemic only exacerbated the situation.</p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/libya-where-ghosts-guns-and-crooked-politicians-hold-sway-19079">Libya: where ghosts, guns and crooked politicians hold sway</a>
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<p>Libya’s <a href="https://www.who.int/health-cluster/countries/libya/Health-Sector-Bulletin-August-2020.pdf?ua=1">health-care system collapsed during the revolution</a>, leaving Libyans vulnerable to COVID-19. Over the summer, many families had to choose between waiting out shelling or <a href="https://www.cspps.org/Polarised-Nation-covid19-libya">exposing their families to COVID-19 if they fled</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A nurse places a blanket over an infant" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390464/original/file-20210318-23-4w1v26.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390464/original/file-20210318-23-4w1v26.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390464/original/file-20210318-23-4w1v26.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390464/original/file-20210318-23-4w1v26.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390464/original/file-20210318-23-4w1v26.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390464/original/file-20210318-23-4w1v26.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390464/original/file-20210318-23-4w1v26.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A nurse places a blanket over an infant as she recovers from heart surgery in the intensive care unit of a hospital in Tripoli, Libya, in February 2020. The World Health Organization says Libya’s health-care system is overburdened, inefficient and short of medicine and equipment.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Felipe Dana)</span></span>
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<p>Libya was a well-off country before the 2011 revolution. With only six million people and vast oil reserves, Libya should look more <a href="https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/overview/still-prospering-growing-economy-and-abundance-resources-continue-provide-high-standard-living">like Qatar</a> or the <a href="https://gulfnews.com/uae/high-living-standards-in-uae-1.391517">United Arab Emirates</a>, both wealthy nations with high standards of living.</p>
<p>Libyans know this and they are fed up. <a href="https://www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-north-africa/north-africa/libya/libya-update-4">This anger has unsettled Libya’s political leaders on all sides of the conflict</a> and is a driving force behind recent, unexpected political progress. The fact that <a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=262330855292593">Haftar and other leaders</a> are supporting the new government is further evidence of pressure from average Libyans given these leaders have rejected compromise until now.</p>
<h2>3. Regional powers seek Libyan stability</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-middle-east-19567353">After U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens was killed in 2012 in Benghazi</a>, the international community abandoned Libya. Compare that response to European and American resolve in Iraq and Afghanistan, where thousands of diplomats remained despite extreme violence.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A man looks at the ruins of the U.S. Consulate building" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390471/original/file-20210318-13-1flu7g0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390471/original/file-20210318-13-1flu7g0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390471/original/file-20210318-13-1flu7g0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390471/original/file-20210318-13-1flu7g0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390471/original/file-20210318-13-1flu7g0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390471/original/file-20210318-13-1flu7g0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390471/original/file-20210318-13-1flu7g0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">In this September 2012 photo, a Libyan man investigates the inside of the U.S. Consulate after an attack that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens, a night earlier in Benghazi, Libya.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon, File)</span></span>
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<p><a href="https://www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-north-africa/north-africa/libya/b069-stopping-war-tripoli">Regional powers filled the void, with an eye on Libya’s wealth</a>. Egypt, Russia and the UAE bet on Haftar, supplying him with sophisticated weapons systems and the mercenaries to operate them. But Turkey’s intervention in 2019 changed that.</p>
<p>Now, in order for regional players to benefit from Libya, they need a functioning government that’s in full control of its oil wealth. Turkey is also interested in the success of <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/arielcohen/2020/01/08/turkey-libya-maritime-deal-upsets-mediterranean-energy-plan/?sh=31ee959b6bee">the marine treaty</a> it signed with Libya a few days before it intervened, strengthening its broader strategy for the eastern Mediterranean Sea. </p>
<p>What else needs to go right?</p>
<h2>U.S., Europe must get involved</h2>
<p>The reasons for hope are, unfortunately, not plentiful enough. Libya’s new prime minister, <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/interim-libya-government-assumes-power-smooth-handover-76489055">Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, also needs to catch few breaks</a>. Most crucially, Europe and the United States need to step up. </p>
<p>Europe has the greatest interest in doing so since Libya is a <a href="https://voxeu.org/article/migration-route-length-and-intent-migrate">major route for migration</a>. <a href="https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/once-destination-migrants-post-gaddafi-libya-has-gone-transit-route-containment">A functioning Libyan state would go a long way</a> to stop thousands of men, women and children from drowning off European shores every year. </p>
<p>Because the U.S. is Egypt’s largest foreign aid donor, it must encourage the Egyptians to pressure Haftar to continue supporting the new government.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390474/original/file-20210318-17-mo7e76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman with dark hair speaks into a microphone and gestures with her right hand." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390474/original/file-20210318-17-mo7e76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390474/original/file-20210318-17-mo7e76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390474/original/file-20210318-17-mo7e76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390474/original/file-20210318-17-mo7e76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390474/original/file-20210318-17-mo7e76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390474/original/file-20210318-17-mo7e76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390474/original/file-20210318-17-mo7e76.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">In this November 2020 photo, Stephanie Williams speaks during a news conference in Tunis, Tunisia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Walid Haddad)</span></span>
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<p>Finally, the international community must support the UN’s efforts in Libya, including the enforcement of the arms embargo, which has been “<a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/03/1087562">totally ineffective</a>.” Stephanie Williams, the <a href="https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/note-correspondents/2021-02-05/note-correspondents%C2%A0acting-special-representative-of-the-secretary-general-for-libya-stephanie-williams-remarks-following-the-closing-of-the-vote-the-new">UN’s acting representative in Libya</a>, is the unsung hero of the political negotiations that led to Libya’s new unity government. </p>
<p>By creating a political dialogue that was gradual and inclusive, Williams used the public pressure to push politicians to act. The hope is that the UN’s new representative in Libya, <a href="https://unsmil.unmissions.org/leadership">Slovakia’s Ján Kubiš</a>, won’t squander this momentum by ignoring the principles that brought success: humility, transparency and the centrality of Libyans’ voices.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/157041/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brian McQuinn does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Ten years after the Arab Spring, hope has given way to turmoil as Libyans have watched duelling governments and armed groups fight over the country’s oil riches. Is a new chance for peace afoot?Brian McQuinn, Assistant Professor, International Studies, University of ReginaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/879072017-11-24T12:24:13Z2017-11-24T12:24:13ZLibya and ICC: not indicting Khalifa Haftar makes mockery of international justice<p>The International Criminal Court (ICC) is <a href="http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/international-law-group-filed-icc-case-against-haftar-accusing-him-war-crimes-511971722">under pressure</a> to prosecute Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar for crimes against humanity during the civil war that has devastated the country. London-based human rights lawyers Guernica 37 submitted a dossier to the court about Haftar and his forces that included allegations of torture, summary executions and excessive destruction. </p>
<p>Field Marshal Haftar is head of the Libyan National Army, the Western-backed force that helped overthrow former president Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. He is closely allied to the government based in the eastern city of Tobruk, which controls much of the country’s oil fields and has long refused to cooperate with the UN-endorsed rival administration in Tripoli led by Fayez al-Sarraj, the prime minister. </p>
<p>Yet regardless of the strength of the case against Haftar, the chances of him being prosecuted look slim. When it comes to pursuing would-be war criminals through the ICC, politics has a habit of getting in the way. Sadly, Libya is well on the way to becoming the archetypal example. </p>
<h2>Selective indictments</h2>
<p>Libya is not a party to the ICC’s <a href="https://www.icc-cpi.int/nr/rdonlyres/ea9aeff7-5752-4f84-be94-0a655eb30e16/0/rome_statute_english.pdf">founding statute</a>, but the court has jurisdiction over the territory thanks to a <a href="https://www.icc-cpi.int/libya">referral</a> from the UN Security Council in 2011. So far the ICC has issued five Libya-related arrest warrants, starting with three in the year of the referral: against <a href="https://www.icc-cpi.int/pages/record.aspx?uri=1099321">Gaddafi himself</a>, his son <a href="https://www.icc-cpi.int/Pages/record.aspx?docNo=ICC-01/11-01/11-3">Saif al-Islam</a>, and his brother-in-law and former head of intelligence <a href="https://www.icc-cpi.int/pages/record.aspx?uri=1099332">Abdullah al-Senussi</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/195863/original/file-20171122-6039-ru7dyz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/195863/original/file-20171122-6039-ru7dyz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/195863/original/file-20171122-6039-ru7dyz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=679&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195863/original/file-20171122-6039-ru7dyz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=679&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195863/original/file-20171122-6039-ru7dyz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=679&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195863/original/file-20171122-6039-ru7dyz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=854&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195863/original/file-20171122-6039-ru7dyz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=854&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195863/original/file-20171122-6039-ru7dyz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=854&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Mahmoud el-Werfalli.</span>
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<p>Two years later, in 2013, the court issued a warrant against <a href="https://www.icc-cpi.int/libya/khaled">Al-Tuhamy Mohamed Khaled</a>, former head of the internal security agency. It wasn’t until this August that it indicted someone not connected to the Gaddafi regime – <a href="https://www.libyaherald.com/2017/08/15/international-criminal-court-issues-arrest-warrant-for-saiqas-mahmoud-warfali/">Mahmoud el-Werfalli</a>, the field commander of the Special Forces Brigade (Al-Saiqa). </p>
<p>El-Werfalli is answerable to Haftar through Al-Saiqa’s close affiliation with the Libyan National Army. Indeed, the ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda recently <a href="https://refugeesmigrants.un.org/icc-prosecutor-urges-handover-al-saiqa-brigade-commander-others-wanted-alleged-crimes-libya">directly appealed</a> to Haftar to have el-Werfalli turned over, since he is accused of the torture and murder of 33 people in Benghazi. </p>
<p>Yet neither el-Werfalli nor the other indicted men have been brought to The Hague for trial. All but Gaddafi are alive, but the continuing chaos has made it difficult for police and security forces to extradite them. Many <a href="https://www.globalresearch.ca/libyan-rebels-and-international-criminal-court-icc-battle-over-seif-al-islam-gaddafis-son/5337498">have also criticised</a> the ICC for being political in its pursuits and practising one-sided justice that has favoured the anti-Gaddafi forces and ultimately the UN Security Council member states. </p>
<p>The reality is that war crimes have almost certainly been committed by all sides in this bloody conflict. Besides Guernica 37, another outfit named Lawyers for Justice in Libya, based in London and Tripoli, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/law/2017/nov/04/iccs-investigation-libya-war-crimes-male-rape-court-hague-trial">has been</a> urging the court to be “more proactive” against claims of countless atrocities against civilians, including systematic male rape. Equally, the ICC should arguably look at the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-europe-33854238/libya-s-migrants-treated-like-animals">callous treatment</a> of migrants in Libyan detention centres, since this too could qualify as a war crime. </p>
<h2>Politics before justice?</h2>
<p>The ICC’s reputation in Libya was not helped by allegations that its former chief prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo <a href="http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/ocampo-affair-the-former-icc-chief-s-dubious-libyan-ties-a-1171195.html">allegedly</a> had business ties to a man closely linked to Haftar. It raises questions about whether it helped the warlord avoid indictment in the earlier years of the civil war.</p>
<p>After Ocampo was replaced by Fatou Bensouda in 2012, the policy of pursuing only Gaddafi henchmen appeared to continue. This year’s decision to indict el-Werfalli was on the face of it a welcome change of direction. Yet that happened after Bensouda paid a <a href="https://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/10/07/2017/Foreign-Minister-meets-Chief-Prosecutor-of-ICC">controversial visit</a> to Qatar in July and met with the country’s foreign minister and emir, prompting <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/08/31/will-the-international-criminal-courts-latest-target-in-libya-be-brought-to-justice/?utm_term=.a2cfba7caa9d">claims</a> the two events were linked.</p>
<p>Qatar has allegedly played a very important role throughout the Libyan conflict <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/giorgio-cafiero/the-uae-and-qatar-wage-a-_b_8801602.html">by supporting</a>, alongside Turkey, the Islamist factions that have been fighting Haftar’s army. In turn, the eastern government of Libya has been <a href="https://www.middleeastobserver.org/2017/05/12/libya-uae-uses-us-made-warplanes-to-support-the-russian-backed-khalifa-haftar/">backed by</a> the likes of United Arab Emirates, the Saudis, Egypt and the Russians. When the Saudis and several other Middle Eastern countries <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/05/saudi-arabia-and-bahrain-break-diplomatic-ties-with-qatar-over-terrorism">cut off</a> diplomatic relations with Qatar in June, so did Tobruk. </p>
<p>The reactions of France, the UK and the US to the latest pressure on Haftar have been striking – bear in mind they are three of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council that gave the ICC jurisdiction in Libya. When the court indicted el-Werfalli, these countries issued a joint statement <a href="https://www.middleeastobserver.org/2017/08/20/39232/">welcoming</a> an announcement from Haftar that he would investigate the claims against his subordinate. The statement made no explicit reference to the ICC or the arrest warrant, in a sign that the West was not backing Bensouda’s move. </p>
<p>In the face of the more recent calls for Haftar himself to be prosecuted, the same countries have been silent. With the French president, <a href="http://www.france24.com/en/libya-pm-serraj-rival-ceasefire-agreement-paris-france-conference-macron">Emmanuel Macron</a>, and the UK foreign secretary, <a href="http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/boris-johnson-meets-libyan-renegade-general-khalifa-haftar-510069746">Boris Johnson</a>, both having held talks with Haftar in recent months, the West appears to have decided that any lasting peace requires his involvement. </p>
<p>This makes the ICC’s pursuit of el-Werfalli a mystery – putting pressure on Haftar and his henchmen via the court may undermine the warlord’s likely candidacy in next spring’s <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/news/archive/2017/07/libyan-rivals-agree-to-a-ceasefire-and-elections/534897/">presidential elections</a>. All the same, Haftar’s strong international support should ensure he is not indicted personally. The longer the court ignores him, the stronger the sense that prevailing political conditions are more relevant to ICC business in Libya than protecting and promoting human rights. </p>
<p>The ICC should operate in a fair manner free of double standards, but time and again it has failed to do so. Numerous African countries <a href="http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/news/Claims-of-ICC-bias-and-double-standards-at-ASP-annual-meeting/2558-3467836-4h8fb2z/index.html">have objected</a> to the disproportionate number of indictments against black leaders while, for example, Tony Blair has never been pursued over Iraq. Meanwhile, the ICC’s selective interventions in Uganda <a href="http://www.swisspeace.ch/fileadmin/user_upload/Media/Topics/Dealing_with_the_Past/Resources/Parrott_Louise_The_Role_of_the_International_Criminal_Court.pdf">have prompted</a> criticisms that it prioritises peace over justice. </p>
<p>The truth is that the international community’s attitude to justice and accountability risks fostering a culture of impunity for human rights violations. At best, non-Western countries take the ICC’s pronouncements with a pinch of salt. At worst, they see it as a modern vehicle for Western imperialism.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/87907/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ilia Xypolia does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Libyan warlord and presidential hopeful looks likely to avoid a summons to The Hague.Ilia Xypolia, Research fellow, University of AberdeenLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/731122017-02-17T02:00:43Z2017-02-17T02:00:43ZWith Comey gone, how can Congress investigate Russia, Trump and the 2016 election?<p>Now that James Comey has been <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/05/10/james-comey-fired-ousted-fbi-director-learned-was-fired-from-tv.html">fired</a> as FBI director, how will the U.S. conduct a fair and accurate investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election and links with President Donald Trump’s campaign?</p>
<p>U.S. congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle are discussing options.</p>
<p>Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and other Democrats have called for a <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/09/comey-firing-congress-reaction-238180">special prosecutor</a> to be appointed. </p>
<p>House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi has called for the creation of <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/09/politics/congress-reacts-james-comey-firing/">an independent commission</a>. Justin Amash, a Republican leader of the House Freedom Caucus, said he is <a href="http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/332659-gop-lawmaker-calls-for-independent-commission-on-russia-after-comeys">considering that option</a>. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, Republican Senator John McCain has urged the formation of a <a href="http://dailycaller.com/2017/05/09/mccain-comey-firing-confirms-need-for-select-committee-to-investigate-russias-election-meddling/">select congressional committee</a>.</p>
<p>Each of these alternatives may seem reasonable, but there are key differences between them. My <a href="http://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/politics-international-relations/international-relations-and-international-organisations/terrorism-and-national-security-reform-how-commissions-can-drive-change-during-crises?format=PB&isbn=9780521173070">research</a> on more than 50 government investigations reveals that independent commissions, like the one Pelosi is advocating for, are more likely than regular or select congressional committees to achieve consensus about controversial events.</p>
<p>A congressional investigation into Russian activities and ties to Trump’s advisers is likely to be riven by partisan discord. An independent commission has greater potential to generate a widely agreed-upon understanding of Russian misbehavior.</p>
<p>At a time when Congress is sharply polarized along partisan lines, congressional investigations tend to become microcosms of that polarization. This is all the more true when an investigation involves an issue about which the president is vulnerable to political embarrassment or attack.</p>
<h2>How a congressional probe might unfold</h2>
<p>The Senate Intelligence Committee, responsible for overseeing intelligence matters, is characterized by more bipartisanship than most congressional committees. It possesses a highly professional staff that works together well across party lines. Its leaders – Republican Sen. Richard Burr and Democratic Sen. Mark Warner – have <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/top-senate-republican-blunt-says-congress-should-probe-flynn-situation/2017/02/14/8abbcad4-f2d5-11e6-a9b0-ecee7ce475fc_story.html?utm_term=.93d733c7494d">expressed</a> a willingness to cooperate in investigating issues related to Russia.</p>
<p>But sharp divisions are likely to emerge between Democrats and Republicans on the committee when they face decisions such as whether to require Trump campaign advisers to testify under oath, or demand that relevant records be turned over to the committee. The same goes for drawing conclusions about the motivations behind Russia’s interference, or the nature of ties between Russia and Trump’s aides. Such issues could run the risk of undermining the credibility of Trump’s election – thereby weakening the Republican Party’s hold on power.</p>
<p>This could result in the issuance of majority and minority committee reports. This happened with congressional reports in 2012 on the Central Intelligence Agency’s treatment of <a href="http://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/senate-intelligence-committee-study-on-cia-detention-and-interrogation-program">detainees</a> and in 2016 on events related to the attack in Benghazi, Libya that killed four <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/benghazi-committee-releases-final-report/story?id=40171034">Americans</a>. Such competing reports would fuel the perpetuation of distinct Republican and Democratic narratives about Russia’s role in the 2016 election. </p>
<p>The same outcome would likely result from an investigation by a select congressional committee, since select committees are also composed of lawmakers from both parties.</p>
<h2>Investigations of the 9/11 attack</h2>
<p>The congressional response to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack illustrates the tendency of partisanship to infect investigations into events that could call into question the president’s standing. </p>
<p>In 2002, the House and Senate intelligence committees conducted a joint investigation of matters related to the attack. This probe, known as the <a href="https://fas.org/irp/congress/2002_rpt/911rept.pdf">joint inquiry</a>, uncovered important information about government lapses that made it easier for Al-Qaida operatives to enter the United States and hijack four airplanes. </p>
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<span class="caption">Families of of 9/11 victims protest the handling of the investigation of the 9/11 attacks, Oct. 2002.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo, Toyokazu Kosugi</span></span>
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<p>Yet the joint inquiry’s substantive findings were overshadowed by partisan <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/17/politics/democrats-say-bush-must-give-full-disclosure.html">disagreements</a> over issues such as whether George W. Bush or Bill Clinton bore responsibility for the failure to prevent the attack. Some Republican members of the joint inquiry were also unwilling to support efforts to press the Bush White House for access to key witnesses and documents. The inquiry concluded with the release of a <a href="https://fas.org/irp/congress/2002_rpt/911rept.pdf">majority report</a> that included separate concluding statements from nine inquiry members, some of whom expressed serious disagreement.</p>
<p>Dissatisfaction with this process led Congress and President Bush to approve a law that created the independent <a href="https://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report.pdf">9/11 Commission</a> nine months after the joint inquiry had begun its work. The commission was characterized by strong bipartisanship. None of the 9/11 Commission’s members held public office during their tenure on the commission. </p>
<p>This distance from the partisan environment of Congress gave the commission’s five Republicans and five Democrats the freedom to find common ground. The result was a unanimous report that provided the definitive account of the Sept. 11 attack. However, the delay in creating the commission meant that this account and the commission’s recommendations were not published until 2004, years after the attack.</p>
<p>To be sure, some commissions also fall prey to polarization. I have <a href="http://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/politics-international-relations/international-relations-and-international-organisations/terrorism-and-national-security-reform-how-commissions-can-drive-change-during-crises?format=PB&isbn=9780521173070">found</a> that about one-third of commissions created to investigate national security issues fail to produce unanimous reports. </p>
<p>But even staunch Democrats and Republicans typically place the national interest above partisan considerations when serving on a commission. They have an incentive to do so because their own reputation is at stake.</p>
<p>To create a commission, Congress would need to approve and Trump would need to sign legislation establishing the body. For now, this outcome appears unlikely. For this reason, some Democratic leaders in Congress are focusing instead on ensuring that the intelligence committee’s investigation is <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/top-senate-republican-blunt-says-congress-should-probe-flynn-situation/2017/02/14/8abbcad4-f2d5-11e6-a9b0-ecee7ce475fc_story.html?utm_term=.d749412a1732">robust</a>.</p>
<p>But if the intelligence committee proves unable to conduct a thorough and bipartisan investigation of Russian meddling and Trump’s campaign, pressure will build on America’s leaders to establish a more independent probe. Hanging in the balance could be whether the United States can forge consensus about what happened and how to prevent it from happening again.</p>
<p><em>Editor’s note: An earlier version incorrectly stated the 9/11 “joint inquiry” had released one majority report and seven dissenting statements. The inquiry’s final report included separate statements from nine members of the committee, some of whom expressed serious disagreement.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/73112/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jordan Tama has received funding for this research from the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation.</span></em></p>Research on more than 50 government investigations reveals how partisanship can get in the way of finding answers we all agree on.Jordan Tama, Assistant Professor of International Relations, American University School of International ServiceLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/538322016-02-05T10:16:13Z2016-02-05T10:16:13Z13 Hours: what actually happened at the US consulate in Benghazi<p>Films can be used as powerful political weapons – and director Michael Bay’s latest film, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4172430/">13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi</a>, is a case in point. Dramatising the deadly 2012 attack on the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/timeline-how-the-benghazi-attack-played-out/2014/06/17/a5c34e90-f62c-11e3-a3a5-42be35962a52_story.html">US consulate in Benghazi</a>, Libya, it has been trumpeted by right-wingers as an assault on Democratic presidential hopeful, Hillary Clinton, who was secretary of state at the time. Donald Trump has even organised <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/15/politics/donald-trump-13-hours-iowa/">free screenings</a> for his supporters. </p>
<p>Certainly the attacks that took place in Benghazi on the evening of September 11 2012 and into the next morning have been mired in controversy. US Ambassador Chris Stevens and computer expert Sean Smith died in the first attack and two former Navy Seals, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty, were killed in the second attack. It was the first time that an American ambassador had been killed <a href="http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/09/12/before-libya-u-s-ambassadors-who-have-died-in-the-line-of-duty/slide/more-lists/">since 1979</a>. </p>
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<p>Many critics of the Obama administration expressed outrage about the inability of the US State Department to protect its own diplomats and its poor response to the attack. Critics of the State Department and Obama administration claimed that it took <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/04/world/africa/libya-fbi-benghazi/">over three weeks</a> for the FBI to travel to the Benghazi consulate site, which made it more difficult to investigate. It also took a long time before any suspects were arrested or identified. Ahmed Abu Khattala, the first militant to be arrested was not apprehended until <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-captured-benghazi-suspect-in-secret-raid/2014/06/17/7ef8746e-f5cf-11e3-a3a5-42be35962a52_story.html">June of 2014</a>.</p>
<p>Supporters of the Obama administration, meanwhile, were irritated by the Republican-led follow-up investigation, which aimed to uncover the missteps, produced a critical <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/house-gop-report-says-clinton-rejected-plea-for-more-security-in-libya/2013/04/23/d2d03dfa-ac6b-11e2-b6fd-ba6f5f26d70e_story.html">46-page report</a> – and has cost US taxpayers a reported <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/oct/19/benghazi-investigation-hillary-clinton-testimony-republicans">$4.7 million</a>.</p>
<p>But what really happened on the night in question? </p>
<h2>Was the compound secure?</h2>
<p>Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton <a href="http://www.ibtimes.com/what-really-happened-benghazi-facts-around-hillary-clintons-handling-2012-attacks-2152398">testified</a> in 2015 on the attack to the House Select Committee on Benghazi. She has also acknowledged that a <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/23/politics/clinton-benghazi/">“systemic breakdown” did take place</a>. </p>
<p>At the most recent hearing, Clinton’s was an emotional display at times. “I would imagine I have thought more about what happened than all of you put together,” she said. “I have lost more sleep than all of you put together. I have been wracking my brain about what more could have been done or should have been done.”</p>
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<p>Many have noted that the compound did not meet security specifications because it was only a <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=E96hBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT83&lpg=PT83&dq=temporary+ad+hoc+status+of+ambassador+compound+in+benghazi&source=bl&ots=YvieeI_laA&sig=Q-MBPS56fYk68nzoX3Egk88cXEA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjjxPjC6c7KAhXCZQ8KHUsvDHwQ6AEIKTAC#v=onepage&q=temporary%20ad%20hoc%20status%20of%20ambassador%20compound%20in%20benghazi&f=false">provisional base</a>. Ambassador Stevens was normally based at the US embassy in Tripoli but was visiting the US Special Mission in Benghazi for a week, where an ad hoc consulate had been set up due to the ongoing conflict. </p>
<p>This made the facility particularly vulnerable. It was also found that the US Department of State did not adequately support security requests from its own security personnel in Benghazi, nor did it have any specific intelligence of an <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/09/us-consulate-benghazi-attack-challenge">imminent attack</a>. Consequently, the unarmed Libyan guards were unable to stop the <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/news/politics/2013/08/Benghazi-book-fred-burton-samuel-m-katz">attackers’ trucks</a> entering the compound. </p>
<h2>How was the ambassador killed?</h2>
<p>Controversy revolves around efforts by the US security team to <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/13/world/middleeast/us-envoy-to-libya-is-reported-killed.html?_r=0">protect the ambassador</a>. Multiple sources claimed that Stevens, security agent Scott Strickland and computer expert, Sean Smith were forced to a <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/news/politics/2013/08/Benghazi-book-fred-burton-samuel-m-katz">safe haven</a> during the assault, which began around 9.40pm. </p>
<p>After a fire was started by the terrorists, however, the group lost track of one another with <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/benghazi-timeline-how-the-attack-unfolded/">Strickland exiting through a window</a>. Strickland claimed that he tried several times to find the other two but was unable to because of the smoke. He then went up to the roof to communicate with the other agents. </p>
<p>Agents later returned to the main building and found Smith’s body, but not Stevens’. It was eventually discovered that Stevens had died at a hospital in Benghazi. Reportedly, Libyan bystanders found him and took him to the hospital where attempts were made to <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/news/politics/2013/08/Benghazi-book-fred-burton-samuel-m-katz">revive him</a>. According to Associated Press, he had died of <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/timeline-how-the-benghazi-attack-played-out/2014/06/17/a5c34e90-f62c-11e3-a3a5-42be35962a52_story.html">asphyxia</a>, likely caused by smoke inhalation.</p>
<p>The second attack was launched at around 4am, when mortars were fired at the CIA complex. It was during this that Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods were killed.</p>
<h2>Who was responsible?</h2>
<p>What is known is that militants arrived in trucks bearing the logo of <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-27732589">Ansar al-Sharia</a>, a group of Islamists who were working with the local government to provide security. The assailants were armed with grenades, AK-47s, other assault weapons and canisters of diesel. The US eventually alleged that two Libyan branches of Ansar al-Sharia – Derna and Benghazi – and another branch in Tunisia were involved in the <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/01/10/us-names-militants-involved-in-benghazi-attack/4411437/">attacks</a>.</p>
<p>Though al-Qaeda’s leader Ayman Zawahiri praised the attackers in a congratulatory video, the group never took credit for the attack. However, Al Qaeda in the Islamic Mahgreb commander, <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2015/06/14/world/mokhtar-belmokhtar/">Mokhtar Belmokhtar was later linked to it, too</a>.</p>
<p>Some of the assailants also have been identified as associates of Muhammad Jamal, who led an Egyptian terrorist group, the <a href="http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2013/10/215171.htm">Muhammad Jamal network (MJN)</a>. Some of the Benghazi attackers reportedly trained at <a href="http://cnsnews.com/news/article/patrick-goodenough/intelligence-committee-members-dispute-nyt-assertion-al-qaeda-had-no">MJN camps in Libya</a>. Though the core of Al Qaeda did not coordinate this attack, it demonstrates how lesser but potentially violent groups have been able to stage their own attacks. This exponential explosion of violent groups with links to Al Qaeda of varying strength makes it more difficult to assign definitive responsibility. </p>
<h2>Premeditated attacks?</h2>
<p>The US first claimed that the attacks were launched in response to the release of the controversial video <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2012/sep/17/innocence-of-muslims-demonstration-film">Innocence of Muslims</a>, an anti-Muslim film which sparked wider protests. The administration mistakenly claimed that it was such protests that led to the more violent compound attack, apparently to avoid framing the attack as an act of terrorism. But Libyans interviewed countered that there were <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/09/us-consulate-benghazi-attack-challenge">no such protests</a>.</p>
<p>Though the assault wasn’t particularly sophisticated and didn’t require years of planning, the attackers had trained with one another and had <a href="http://docs.house.gov/meetings/FA/FA18/20130710/101115/HHRG-113-FA18-Wstate-BymanD-20130710.pdf">clear orders</a>. They also had been given excellent intelligence, knowing how to get from different access points in the ambassador’s residence and how to cut off the security agents and the local guard force.</p>
<h2>A high-risk environment</h2>
<p>So the Benghazi attack did represent a serious lapse in security and intelligence, as well as a misunderstanding of the changing terrorist networks in the region. But it was far from a unique incident. Between 1998 and 2011 there were 13 deadly attacks on <a href="http://docs.house.gov/meetings/FA/FA18/20130710/101115/HHRG-113-FA18-Wstate-BymanD-20130710.pdf">US diplomatic facilities</a>, and seven US ambassadors have been killed while on the job <a href="http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/09/12/before-libya-u-s-ambassadors-who-have-died-in-the-line-of-duty/slide/more-lists/">since 1950</a>. Many more attempted attacks and plots thankfully have been thwarted. </p>
<p>Ultimately, the biggest lesson is that the region is incredibly unstable and dangerous with almost 1,100 terrorist attacks taking place in Libya since the fall of the <a href="http://www.start.umd.edu/gtd/search/IncidentSummary.aspx?gtdid=201209110002">Qaddafi regime</a>. Questions certainly remain, but while the right uses the attack as proof of Clinton’s incompetence, it is actually more surprising that there have not been more US fatalities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/53832/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Natasha Lindstaedt does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The right are using a new film about the 2012 Benghazi US consulate attack as a political weapon against Hillary Clinton. Are they justified?Natasha Lindstaedt, Senior Lecturer, University of EssexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/496552015-10-23T03:02:02Z2015-10-23T03:02:02ZBenghazi committee grills Clinton for 11 hours, yields zero new facts<figure>
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<p>Since winning control of Congress in 2010, many House Republicans have specialized in political grandstanding. The hard work of legislating has never been their cup of tea.</p>
<p>But even by their hyper-partisan standards, House Republicans reached a new level of partisanship on Thursday. For 11 grueling hours, a House committee grilled Hillary Clinton about the 2012 terrorist attack on the State Department’s facility in Benghazi, Libya. Although the committee droned on from dawn to dusk, the hearing did not produce a single substantive new fact about Benghazi. </p>
<p>The pointless nature of Thursday’s hearing should come as no surprise. Almost two years ago, the Senate completed <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/16/world/middleeast/senate-report-finds-benghazi-attack-was-preventable.html">a thorough investigation</a> into the deaths of Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans in the Benghazi attack. In January 2013, as part of the Senate’s Benghazi investigation, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/24/us/testifying-on-benghazi-clinton-cites-new-security-steps.html">Clinton testified</a> before multiple Congressional committees.</p>
<p>There was absolutely no reason for Congress to investigate Benghazi yet again.</p>
<h2>A partisan ambush</h2>
<p>But fact-finding was never the goal of Thursday’s hearing. As was immediately apparent from Congressman Trey Gowdy’s opening statement attacking Clinton, the House committee’s sole purpose was to sabotage Clinton’s presidential campaign. </p>
<p>The House Republicans failed in that effort. They forgot the first rule of political ambushes: if you are going to use a Congressional investigation to harass and embarrass your opponents, you must present a façade of impartiality.</p>
<p>But the Republicans could not muster the slightest pretense of objectivity. Before the hearings even began, Republican House Majority Leader <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/30/politics/kevin-mccarthy-benghazi-comments-democrats-committee/">Kevin McCarthy</a> gave the game away when he bluntly told Fox News that the Benghazi committee was established to bring down Clinton’s poll numbers.</p>
<p>The partisan tone that Chairman Gowdy exhibited throughout Thursday’s hearing only confirmed McCarthy’s point. Before Gowdy asked Clinton a single question, the chairman lambasted the Democrats on the committee for not meekly consenting to his fishing expedition. </p>
<p>Following Gowdy’s lead, the other Republicans asked their questions in the form of accusations that Clinton heartlessly caused the American deaths in Benghazi. No objective observer could interpret the committee’s questions as having any purpose other than to score crude political points. </p>
<h2>Clinton learned from the past</h2>
<p>Crucially, Clinton refused to take the committee’s bait. She learned from her past mistakes. In the 2013 Senate hearing, she was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/hillary-clintons-benghazi-testimony-was-sprinkled-with-heated-exchanges/2013/01/23/749d5b60-6598-11e2-b84d-21c7b65985ee_story.html">combative and defensive</a>. On Thursday, she was patient, measured and relaxed. She avoided giving her opponents soundbites they could use against her in the 2016 presidential election.</p>
<p>Although they seem incapable of articulating it in a non-partisan fashion, the Republicans actually have one reasonable point to make about Benghazi: the State Department failed to adequately protect its outpost in Libya. </p>
<p>Outnumbered and outgunned in a Libyan city wracked by civil disorder, Ambassador Stevens and the men who died with him <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/chaos-at-the-consulate-as-militants-attack/2012/09/12/f92ad9d2-fcfe-11e1-8adc-499661afe377_story.html">never had a chance</a> when militants stormed the State Department facility. As secretary of state at the time of the attack, Clinton bears a share of responsibility for the security failures in Benghazi.</p>
<p>However, the Benghazi attack must ultimately be understood in a broader context. Tragic though the events in Libya were, the reality is there is inherent risk whenever Americans go overseas. A case in point is the 1983 terrorist attacks on the US Embassy and Marine barracks in <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1986/09/24/world/team-warned-defense-dept-before-marine-barracks-blast.html">Beirut</a>, Lebanon. The Beirut bombings <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1984/09/21/world/car-bombing-has-become-favored-tactic-of-terrorists-in-the-middle-east.html">killed 268 Americans</a>, a disaster on a far greater scale than Benghazi. </p>
<p>But you won’t hear about the lessons of Beirut from the Benghazi committee. The reason is that the Beirut attacks happened on the watch of <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1983/10/25/world/a-president-under-siege.html">Ronald Reagan</a>, a Republican president. Gowdy’s committee has no interest in placing Benghazi in historical context because doing so would undermine the fiercely partisan story they want to tell. </p>
<h2>Partisan extremism is the real threat</h2>
<p>The truth is partisan extremism undermines American national security just as much as inadequate security measures at State Department facilities. </p>
<p>It should be clear by now that we will never learn from our past if we insist on viewing history through a partisan lens. If House Republicans were serious about investigating America’s misjudgments in the Middle East, they would begin with an investigation of the Bush administration’s woefully <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/mar/17/iraq-war-planning-wholly-irresponsible">inadequate planning</a> for the Iraq War. The Bush administration’s profound lack of foresight contributed to the chaos and instability in Iraq that ultimately led to the deaths of 4,500 American troops and hundreds of <a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/18/17326297-ten-years-after-iraq-invasion-us-troops-ask-was-it-worth-it">thousands of Iraqis</a>.</p>
<p>But House Republicans have made clear that they are concerned only with partisan attacks. They have no interest in truly learning from America’s mistakes.</p>
<p>When Paul Ryan becomes house speaker <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/22/us/politics/paul-ryan-house-speaker-freedom-caucus.html">next week</a>, he would be wise to shut down Gowdy’s committee. The toxic partisanship of House Republicans like Gowdy has distracted and divided the nation. It’s time to close the book on the Benghazi investigation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/49655/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<h4 class="border">Disclosure</h4><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anthony J Gaughan is a registered independent. </span></em></p>Trey Gowdy and the Republicans on the committee even fail to get a rise out of Hillary Clinton.Anthony J. Gaughan, Associate Professor of Law, Drake UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/145522013-05-23T20:34:51Z2013-05-23T20:34:51ZBack to the future: Benghazi, Republicans and the urge to impeach<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/24312/original/9zq9snvz-1369271448.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A US flag lies in the wreckage of the Benghazi consulate, stormed on September 11 2012 in an attack that saw the US ambassador and three others killed.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/Stringer</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Are US Republicans set to attempt to impeach another Democratic president?</p>
<p>Utah representative Jason Chaffetz <a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/node/348752">suggested</a> US president Barack Obama could face impeachment over his administration’s response to the attacks against the American embassy in Benghazi nine months ago. “They purposefully and willfully misled the American people,” Chaffetz claimed, “and that’s unacceptable.”</p>
<p>Chaffetz was not the first Republican to float the idea of impeachment over Benghazi. A week earlier, Oklahoma senator James Inhofe <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/05/inhofe-mulls-i-word-after-benghazi-91201.html">told</a> radio host Rusty Humphries: “People may be starting to use the I-word before too long”.</p>
<p>“The I-word meaning ‘impeachment’?” Humphries clarified. Inhofe confirmed that was the one, though he noted successfully impeaching the president would first require Republicans to win control of the Senate.</p>
<p>It would require a good deal more than that, however. Because nine months of Republican-led accusations and investigations have ended not with a bang but a whimper. Inhofe <a href="http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/dec/22/inhofe-benghazi-cover-bigger-watergate-iran-contra/">said of Benghazi</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Of all the great cover-ups in history — the Pentagon Papers, Iran-Contra, Watergate, all the rest of them — this … is going to go down as the most egregious cover-up in American history.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Inhofe’s statement is useful as a study in hyperbole but little else. When the White House released emails that showed how the administration developed its talking points on Benghazi for the media, “the most egregious cover-up in American history” turned out to be a bit of interagency squabbling mixed with caution about getting ahead of an unfolding national security story layered with classified information. “I was told there was going to be a cover-up,” Slate’s John Dickerson <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2013/05/barack_obama_benghazi_cover_up_white_house_emails_don_t_reveal_evidence.html">huffed</a> after reading the hundred pages of Benghazi emails. Instead he found, as Obama <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/13/obama-press-conference-benghazi_n_3266639.html">said</a> at a recent press conference, “There is no there there.”</p>
<p>So if there is no “there” in the Benghazi cover-up, what’s behind all the impeachment talk?</p>
<p>Impeachment threats have become a second-term rite of passage. Whispers of “impeachment” have become a hallmark of second-term presidents since Richard Nixon resigned from office four decades ago. During the first four years of a presidency, the opposition party focuses on preventing re-election. In the lead-up to the 2010 midterm elections (in which the GOP won historic victories), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell made this focus clear. “The single most important thing we want to achieve,” he <a href="http://www.nationaljournal.com/member/magazine/top-gop-priority-make-obama-a-one-term-president-20101023">said in an interview</a>, “is for President Obama to be a one-term president.”</p>
<p>Failing that, the opposition tries to oust the president through impeachment. For Ronald Reagan, it was the Iran-Contra hearings. For Bill Clinton, it was sex in the Oval Office. For George W. Bush, it was 35 articles of impeachment largely revolving around the Iraq War. The Republicans are making their first impeachment bid on Benghazi, but should that fail they have the IRS and AP phone records scandals waiting in the wings.</p>
<p>Impeachment is another form of obstructionism. The current GOP has made an art form of blocking legislation. The <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/02/its-been-951-days-since-the-senate-passed-a-major-new-law/273197/">last major bill</a> to pass the Senate was the Dodd-Frank financial-reform legislation. It passed on July 15, 2010. For those keeping track: that’s more than 1,000 days ago.</p>
<p>When it comes to Obama’s second-term agenda, the GOP would like to see that trend continue. Every day spent scandal-squashing is a day not spent on other legislative priorities. The White House Chief of Staff <a href="http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/05/18/white-house-aims-to-spend-10-of-its-time-on-controversies/">has mandated</a> White House staff allocate no more than 10% of its time to scandal management. The Republicans would like to tack an extra zero on that percentage.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/24323/original/fp9dq2vy-1369275274.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/24323/original/fp9dq2vy-1369275274.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/24323/original/fp9dq2vy-1369275274.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/24323/original/fp9dq2vy-1369275274.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/24323/original/fp9dq2vy-1369275274.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/24323/original/fp9dq2vy-1369275274.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/24323/original/fp9dq2vy-1369275274.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">President Obama and former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton announce the Benghazi attacks in late 2012. Will Obama now face impeachment for his handling of the affair?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/Michael Reynolds</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Impeachment talk escalates the sense of scandal. So far, the American people haven’t gotten exercised about Benghazi. Yes, a recent CNN poll shows the majority thinks it’s an important issue, but those numbers <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2013/05/20/the-morning-plum-presidential-scandals-only-in-the-minds-of-republicans/">are largely driven</a> by Republican respondents. Moderates and Democrats tend to trust that the Obama administration was acting on the best information it had at the time.</p>
<p>The Benghazi story is confusing. It seems to largely be about the talking points Ambassador Susan Rice used on the Sunday morning shows five days after the Benghazi attacks. The GOP <a href="http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/84072.html">has called</a> her comments “misleading”. Yet Americans haven’t managed much outrage over being misled. The public expects spin on the Sunday shows, and they grant a good deal of leeway on national security issues. With nothing to shock the conscience, all Republicans can do is elevate the appearance of scandal. Rattling on about impeachment is one way to do that.</p>
<p>Impeachment talk over Benghazi is the Republicans’ opening gamut for 2016. Should Hillary Clinton run in 2016, she will be a lock for the Democratic nomination and a formidable candidate in the general election. Already well-liked by Democrats, her popularity skyrocketed during her tenure as Secretary of State.</p>
<p>Which is why turning the administration’s response to Benghazi into “high crimes and misdemeanors” is so critical for Republicans. Clinton was Secretary of State during the attacks; the State Department played a key role in drafting the talking points. Republican response on Benghazi before the 2012 election centred primarily on Obama, but since then has come to encompass Clinton as well. When Rusty Humphries interviewed Senator Inhofe about impeachment, both Inhofe and Humphries focused on Clinton more than Obama. Expect that trend to continue as Republicans try to bloody Clinton up in advance of 2016.</p>
<p>So for all the talk of impeachment, will Obama face impeachment hearings? Don’t count on it. The Clinton impeachment hearings damaged the Democratic administration, but they damaged the Republicans even more. </p>
<p>The memory of that overreach has led some Republican leaders to <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2013/05/behind-the-curtain-why-the-gop-thinks-it-could-blow-it-91528.html?hp=f1">urge caution and restraint</a>. </p>
<p>But given its utility for obstruction and destruction, while the reality of impeachment is remote, the rhetoric of impeachment is here to stay.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/14552/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nicole Hemmer does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Are US Republicans set to attempt to impeach another Democratic president? Utah representative Jason Chaffetz suggested US president Barack Obama could face impeachment over his administration’s response…Nicole Hemmer, Visiting Assistant Professor at University of Miami & Research Associate, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.