WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine), a senior member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, released the following statement today regarding a closed Intelligence Committee hearing on the Benghazi attack on September 11, 2012:

“It has been over two months since the attacks on the U.S. facilities in Benghazi and our government has not yet brought the attackers to justice, announced any significant arrests, or determined the circumstances and motivations surrounding the attacks.  We expect more of our national security leaders, and as a senior member of the Senate Intelligence Committee I intend to pursue the facts wherever they lead.  In our meetings with Director Clapper and other key officials, I will demand that they move heaven and earth to find and bring to justice those responsible for these heinous acts. 

“In 1985, following a number of attacks on American diplomatic facilities in places including Tehran and Beirut, several of which were violent mob assaults, Congressman Dan Mica and I worked in a bipartisan fashion to overhaul our diplomatic security programs to address the growing threats that were facing our overseas personnel and facilities.  We overhauled our diplomatic security programs, established the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service, ensured that the Secretary of State would be accountable for the security of our diplomatic personnel and facilities, and required that incidents in which there is a loss of life or property, such as the Benghazi attack, are investigated by an Accountability Review Board.  Nearly thirty years later, we must once again conduct a comprehensive review our government’s security policies for personnel and facilities overseas and make certain we are properly prepared in the face of evolving threats.  Doing so is critical to ensuring our heroic men and women serving in diplomatic posts around the world are safe, and that the attackers are brought to justice.”

BACKGROUND: In 1985, then Congresswoman Snowe and Congressman Dan Mica, Ranking Member and Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on International Operations, led the effort to enact the Omnibus Diplomatic Security and Antiterrorism Act, which took decisive steps to overhaul the diplomatic security programs. Specifically, they consolidated and strengthened State Department security programs by formally establishing the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, which serves as the security and law enforcement arm of the Department and protects U.S. diplomatic missions around the world. The bill increased funding for the construction of safer and more secure diplomatic facilities. Finally, the Accountability Review Board was crafted to emphasize accountability whenever there is a loss of life or property. When such security-related events occur, a thorough and independent investigation is initiated to determine accountability and promote improved security programs and practices, a process now underway with the Benghazi attacks.

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