Hicks and the 9/11 Jihad in Libya

On April 23, House Republicans released an interim progress report on
their investigation into the Benghazi killings. It cited “numerous
reports” that “the Brigade had extremist connections, and it had been
implicated in the kidnapping of American citizens as well as in the
threats against U.S. military assets.”

The report also stated that just a few days before Stevens arrived in
Benghazi, the Martyrs Brigade informed State Department officials they
no longer would provide security as members of the mission, including
Stevens, traveled through the city.

From June 2011 to July 2012, Eric Nordstrom, the regional security
officer for Libya at the time, documented more than 200 security threats
and violent incidents threatening to U.S. personnel in Libya. Some 50
of those incidents occurred in Benghazi.

Yet despite those threats, repeated requests for additional security
from the mission went unheeded by the State Department, for reasons that
remain unclear.

Perhaps the biggest question is why the State Department would hire a
group that openly displayed its admiration for al-Qaida, and ask it to
participate in the defense of its diplomatic mission.

The banner, or “cover photo” of one of the group’s Facebook pages, shows
an Islamic fighter, or mujahid, with a portable rocket launcher resting
on his shoulder.

The distinctive black flag of al-Qaida can be seen fluttering to the
man’s right, attached to the vehicle in which he is riding. The mujahid
wears a headband based on the design of the al-Qaida flag. The flag in
question features the shahada, or Islamic declaration of faith, and a
white circle that is sometimes described as the “seal of Mohammed.”

The flag was made famous by the late Abu Musab al-Zarqawi’s Iraqi
al-Qaida affiliate, commonly known as “al-Qaida in Iraq.” The flag
originally used by al-Qaida was a plain black flag with the shahada
written on it in white. Both flags are widely used by contemporary
jihadist groups.

The original cover photo on Facebook page of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade, displaying the al-Qaida banner.

An Arabic inscription written over the photo reads: “Allah, his prophet
and Libya and that’s it.” The cover photo was posted by the site
administrator on June 10, 2012., and was the first activity on the
Facebook page.

The photo was presumably taken at a massive rally in support of the
sharia, or Islamic law, held in Benghazi three days earlier, on June 7.
The rally included a military parade featuring units from a large
cross-section of the Eastern Libyan militias that spearheaded the 2011
rebellion against Moammar Gadhafi.

Video of the event posted by local sources shows several al-Qaida flags
flying at the event. Al-Qaida-inspired accessories, such as headbands
and decals, were widely displayed as well. One of the sponsoring
organizations of the rally was Ansar al-Sharia. The term Ansar al-Sharia
means “supporters of the sharia.” Sharia is Islamic law and
regulations.

On June 15, five days after the photo was posted, the February 17th
Martyrs Brigade updated the cover photo on the Facebook page, replacing
the image with a photo montage featuring its own logo and a masked
commando sporting the colors of the new Libyan national flag on a
shoulder patch.

The cover photo has been updated several times since then. It is clear,
however, that the group has repudiated neither al-Qaida nor its violent
ideology.

On June 28, for example, the brigade posted a second graphic bearing a
headline title that translates to: “The bearded [man] is suspect until
he proves he is not a Muslim!!!”

The graphic features two rows of pictures. The top row consists of
bearded Muslim men. The images include some of the leading figures of
modern-day jihadism, including al-Qaida founder Osama bin Laden and the
founder of al-Qaida in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

The Arabic text on the graphic states the Muslims are accused of various faults, including “terrorism” and “extremism.”

The second row shows bearded non-Muslims (including Tolstoy, Che Guevara
and George Bernard Shaw). The caption suggests the Western world sees
the bearded non-Muslims as intelligent, and holds them in high esteem.

To drive home the point,  the graphic includes a quotation from the
Quran: “Then will we treat Muslims like criminals? What is the matter
with you? How do you judge?”

The implication is that the Muslims in the top row, including Osama bin Laden, have been unfairly labeled.

Graphic from Facebook page of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade
Several entries on the Facebook page make clear the brigade’s sympathies
for the Ansar al-Sharia militia, which allegedly has al-Qaida ties. In
the Western media, Ansar al-Sharia has been widely accused of having
perpetrated the Sept. 11 Benghazi attacks.

An entry posted Sept. 19, eight days after the Benghazi attacks, laments
the death of an Ansar al-Sharia member. It asks God to “receive him
amongst the martyrs” and to receive him “into his wide paradise.” The
entry points out that the deceased, Adham al-Falastini,  previously was a
member of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade.

Another revealing earlier post, on June 25, shows a graphic from a
now-defunct Ansar al-Sharia Facebook page. It carries a warning from
Ansar al-Sharia about the distribution of pens bearing an image of the
Virgin Mary.  The graphic cautions against propagating beliefs that
Muslims should scorn.

A warning from Ansar al-Sharia about “Virgin
Mary pens.” Graphic reproduced on a Facebook page of the February 17th
Martyrs Brigade.

At least two recent entries on the February 17th Martyrs Brigade site
feature the Ansar al-Sharia logo. One of these, dated Jan. 29, suggests
that Ansar al-Sharia is the target of a “treacherous” plot to get the
brigade blamed for various attacks and assassination attempts.

The other, dated Jan. 20, announces that Ansar al-Sharia has begun
guarding the western gate of Benghazi “in the service of our religion
and…of the Libyan people.”

This news, which is corroborated by other sources, is notable in light
of Western news reports claiming Ansar al-Sharia was driven out of the
city following the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. mission.

Ansar al-Sharia logo on Facebook page of February 17th Martyrs Brigade
A more recent entry, March 2, features a graphic celebrating Jabhat
al-Nusra, the offshoot of al-Qaida in Iraq that has played a leading
role in the Syrian insurrection against the rule of Bashar al-Assad.

Late last year, Jabhat al-Nusra was designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government.

In defiance of the U.S. designation, the Arabic on the graphic declares, “We are all Jabhat al-Nusra.”

The accompanying Facebook entry repeats this sentiment, and recites the
exploits of the al-Qaida-linked brigade in the Syrian civil war,
including “more than 40 martyrdom operations.” Jihadist groups use
“martyrdom operations” to refer to suicide bombings.

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“We are all Jabhat al-Nusra.” Graphic from a Facebook page of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade
The State Department had hired the February 17th Martyrs Brigade to
provide security at the U.S. mission in Benghazi. A document recovered
from the mission two days after the attack indicated the State
Department had arranged for the Martyrs Brigade to act as a “Quick
Reaction Force” to protect the mission.

The Memorandum of Agreement states that “in the event of an attack on
the U.S. mission, QRF will request additional support from the 17th
February Martyrs Brigade.”

Throughout the summer leading up to the attack, embassy officials
repeatedly asked the State Department for additional security. But the
State Department actually reduced security, pulling out a military
detachment responsible for defending diplomats in Libya.

One reason the requests for additional security may have been denied:
They did not fit into the administration narrative that al-Qaida
elements no longer posed a threat to U.S. interests.

One diplomatic cable to the mission indicated that the U.S.-based deputy
assistant secretary for diplomatic security was “reluctant to ask for
[additional security] apparently out of concern that it would be
embarrassing to the [State Department] to continue to have to rely on
[Defense Department] assets to protect our mission.”

When the mission’s regional safety officer expressed an interest in July
2012 asking State Department official to permit the military security
team to continue to protect the mission, Charlene Lamb, deputy assistant
secretary in charge of diplomatic security, sent an e-mail that
responded: “NO, I do not [I repeat] not want them to ask for the
[military security] team to stay!”

Republicans have complained in recent weeks that the Obama
administration has been stonewalling their investigation. According to
Fox News, four career officials at the State Department and the CIA have
retained counsel as they prepare to provide Congress with inside
information on the attacks.

"Victoria Toensing, an attorney representing one of the whistleblowers,
said they have been threatened by CIA and State Department officials
with repercussions if they talk to Congress about what happened in
Benghazi. But President Obama said earlier this week he was “unaware” of
anyone being discouraged from coming forward to tell Congress their
side of the story.

" House Republican Darrell Issa, chairman of the House Oversight
Committee, issued a statement on Tuesday: “Over the past two weeks, I
have sent four letters requesting that this administration make
information available about how lawyers — who already have security
clearances and are representing Benghazi whistleblowers — can be cleared
to fully hear their clients’ stories. I have yet to receive any
responses from the Obama administration.”

The House Republicans’ Interim Progress Report concludes with an ominous
warning: “This singular event will be repeated unless the United States
recognizes and responds to the threats we face around the world, and
properly postures resources and security assets to counter and respond
to those threats.

“Until that time, the United States will remain in a reactionary mode
and should expect more catastrophes like Benghazi, in which U.S.
personnel on the ground perform bravely, but are not provided with the
resources for an effective response,” the report stated.