WASHINGTON — Five men are under round-the-clock U.S. surveillance
in Libya, wanted for questioning in the attack last year on the
diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya. The White House believes there is
enough proof for a military force to seize them as terrorist suspects,
officials say, but prefers to wait until investigators have enough
evidence to try them in a U.S. civilian courtroom.
The decision not to seize
the men militarily underscores the White House aim to move away from
hunting terrorists as enemy combatants and toward a process in which
most are apprehended and tried by the countries where they are living,
or arrested by the U.S. with the host country's cooperation and tried in
the U.S. criminal justice system. Using military force to detain the
men might also harm fledgling relations with Libya and other post-Arab
Spring governments with which the U.S. is trying to build partnerships
to hunt al-Qaida as the organization expands throughout the region.
The
investigation has been slowed by the reduced U.S. intelligence presence
in the region since the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks in Benghazi and by the
limited ability to assist by Libya's post-revolutionary law enforcement
and intelligence agencies, which are still in their infancy since the
overthrow of dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
A
senior administration official said the FBI has identified individuals
it believes have information or may have been involved in the Benghazi
attack and is considering options to bring those responsible to justice.
But taking action in remote eastern Libya would be difficult. America's
relationship with Libya would be weighed as part of those options, the
official said. The official and others familiar with the operation spoke
only on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to
discuss the effort on the record.
ليست هناك تعليقات:
إرسال تعليق