Christopher StevenA rocket attack in Benghazi on Tuesday evening that killed the US ambassador to Libya and three other embassy staff members could have been an attempt to destabilise the country, according to Malta’s Foreign Affairs Minister Tonio Borg.
“It seems there are elements that want to destabilise the country,” he told a press conference yesterday, describing the attack as an “assassination”.
Italy’s Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi, who spoke at the same event marking his visit to Malta, said this was a “terrorist” attack that should not interfere with Libya’s current transformation.
The attack occurred amid armed protests over a poorly produced American film mocking Muslim prophet Mohammed, which appeared online recently.
Similar protests took place in Cairo where protesters scaled the US embassy and temporarily replaced the flag with a black Islamic banner.
The protests began on Tuesday as the world was commemorating the 11th anniversary of the 2001 terror attack on New York’s Twin Towers.
The contentious film, Innocence of Muslims, was produced by Californian Sam Becile, who claims to be Israeli-American and has now gone into hiding.
He has previously described Islam as a “cancer”.
Florida pastor Terry Jones, who incited outrage in the past by burning copies of the Koran, promoted the film. Muslims find any depiction of the prophet blasphemous but the amateurish film is particularly offensive in its portrayal, showing their prophet as a fool, a philanderer and a fake.
In one clip posted on YouTube, Mohammed was shown in an apparent sex act with a woman.
Protests over the film did not spread to Tripoli, though Libyans who were outraged by yesterday’s events planned rival demonstrations to show their disapproval of the attacks, which were condemned harshly by Libya as well as the US.
Details of US Ambassador Christopher Steven’s death remain sketchy but the 52-year-old is said to have died as the Benghazi consulate tried to evacuate staff coming under attack by a mob firing machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades.
Libya’s Deputy Interior Minister Wanis Al-Sharif said US consular staff were rushed to a safe house after the initial attack and a plane with US commandos arrived from Tripoli to evacuate them.
“It was supposed to be a secret place and we were surprised the armed groups knew about it. There was shooting,” he said.
Two US personnel were killed there, while two others were killed at the main consular building. Between 12 and 17 were wounded.
President Barack Obama immediately ordered increased security to protect American diplomatic personnel posted around the world.
“While the United States rejects efforts to denigrate the religious beliefs of others, we must all unequivocally oppose the kind of senseless violence that took the lives of these public servants,” he said.
Libya’s interim president, Mohammed el-Megarif, apologised to the US for the attack, which he described as “cowardly”.
Malta’s Ambassador to Libya Victor Camilleri said the attacks were “isolated”.
“My own assessment is that the very large part of the population and authorities are not extremist in any way, but obviously there are some elements...” he said.
“It strikes me that these elements are a minority, they are isolated.
“They are not an organised group at a national level. They do not have popular support.”
Tripoli-based Libyan journalist Khaled Gulam backed his claims: “This is a terrible and very sad situation... Everyone is surprised. There is no justification for this attack. Everybody is really angry.”
The attack is believed to have been carried out by an al-Qaeda-style Sunni Islamist group that has been active in Benghazi, a Libyan security official said.
Heavily armed groups such as Ansar al-Sharia, or Supporters of Sharia, have in the past weeks claimed responsibility for the attacks on mosques, declaring Sufi practices as “heretical”.
Advocating a strict interpretation of Islam, Ansar al-Sharia has bulldozed Sufi shrines and mosques that house tombs in the Libyan capital Tripoli and other cities, including ancient sites dating back to 5,000 years ago.
Following the violent overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi last year, many Libyans have kept their weapons, giving rise to instability.
Western leaders and officials joined condemnation of Tuesday’s assault as did Lebanon’s Shi’ite militant group Hizbollah.
The Maltese government issued a statement expressing solidarity with the victims’ families and US authorities. It said the attack should serve to strengthen the resolve of the Libyan democratic movement.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai sharply condemned the film in a statement, calling its making a “devilish act”, saying he was certain those involved in its production represented a very small minority.
Afghanistan shut down the YouTube site so Afghans would not be able to see the film.