U.S. Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens, 3 Others, Killed in Attack

“My name is Chris Stevens, and I’m the new U.S. Ambassador to Libya. I had the honor to serve as the U.S. envoy to the Libyan opposition, and I was thrilled to watch the Libyan people stand up and demand their rights. Now I’m excited to return to Libya to continue the great work we’ve started, building a solid partnership between the United States and Libya to help YOU, the Libyan people, achieve your goals.” –Christopher J. Stevens, May 2012

Stevens, who so clearly wanted peace, prosperity and partnership to work in Libya, was among four Americans killed in Benghazi, Libya on Tuesday evening. Libyan officials said an angry mob of Muslim protesters gathered to demonstrate against an American-made film that “ridicules” Islam’s Prophet Muhammad. There, the mob began firing their guns and burned down the U.S. consulate in Benghazi.

(For more on the film, The Innocence of Muslims, and the filmmaker, Sam Bacile, check out this Washington Post piece about his going into hiding.)

Stevens was the “first U.S. ambassador to be killed in the line of duty since 1979,” the AP noted. He died of suffocation. The other three Americans killed, including two Marines, were shot by a “well-armed” crowd.

“I strongly condemn the outrageous attack on our diplomatic facility in Benghazi, which took the lives of four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens,” President Barack Obama said in a written statement.

Deputy Prime Minister of Libya, Dr. Mustafa Abushagur, sent out a few heartfelt tweets in response to the killings:

Amb. Stevens was a friend of Libya and we are shocked at the the attacks on the US consulate in Benghazi.

— Dr.Mustafa Abushagur (@MustafaAG) September 12, 2012

I condemn these barbaric acts in the strongest possible terms. This is an attack on America, Libya and free people everywhere.

— Dr.Mustafa Abushagur (@MustafaAG) September 12, 2012

Libya’s interim president, Mohammed el-Megarif, apologized to the United States for the attack, according to the AP. El-Megarif called the attack “cowardly” and said: “We extend our apology to America, the American people and the whole world.”

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said “The world needs more Chris Stevenses.” She also made certain to define the culprits: “This was an attack by a small and savage group, not the people or government of Libya.” Clinton said the U.S. will not rest until the attackers are brought to justice. “As long as there are those who would take innocent life in the name of God, the world will never know a true and lasting peace,” Clinton said.

RT posted this video from the consulate attack (tread lightly):

Photo: Getty

More from CBS News:

Hours before the protest erupted in Benghazi, protesters scaled the walls of the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, Egypt, tearing down and replacing the American flag with an Islamic banner.

Tuesday’s attacks were the first such assaults on U.S. diplomatic facilities in either country, at a time when both Libya and Egypt are struggling to overcome the turmoil following the ouster of their longtime leaders, Muammar Qaddafi and Hosni Mubarak, in uprisings last year.

There have been indications in recent months that radical, armed Islamic groups have gained a foothold in Libya since the fall of the Qaddafi regime.

One of the groups to emerge in post-revolution Libya, Ansar al-Sharia, claimed responsibility Wednesday for the attack in Benghazi, which has been condemned by the country’s new government.

Of course, what would this sad day be without politics: Mitt Romney wasted to no time in calling Obama’s handling of the attack “disgraceful.”