New Report: ARB placed blame on mid-level officials

On September 16, 2013, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), as part of the ongoing investigation into the Benghazi terrorist attacks, released an interim report focused on the conclusions of the State Department Accountability Review Board (ARB). The ARB had placed blame on mid-level officials but did not examine the role of more senior officials involved in security decisions.  Relying on documents and testimony of State Department officials, the ...

“One year ago, four Americans were killed in a vicious and planned attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi. Today, we remember Ambassador Christopher Stevens, Sean Smith, Glen Doherty, and Tyrone S. Woods, who served their country honorably and died protecting it. We also remember their families and colleagues, who will always keenly feel their loss,” Chairman Issa stated.

"Today, Ambassador Pickering reached an agreement with the Oversight Committee to voluntarily appear for a transcribed interview and answer all questions posed by Committee investigators,” said Chairman Darrell Issa.

“During [Wednesday’s] hearing, the findings and methodology of the State Department’s ‘Accountability Review Board’ (ARB) were discussed frequently,” Issa wrote in his letter to Pickering.