Killing of US envoy to Libya underscores threat of unchecked religious fanaticism

In this April 2011 file photo, US envoy Christopher Stevens (c.), speaks to Council member for Misrata Dr. Suleiman Fortia (r.) at the Tibesty Hotel Ben Curtis/AP/File

The US ambassador to Libya, J. Christopher Stevens, and three diplomatic staff members were killed last night when Islamists attacked the American consulate in the eastern city of Benghazi, the State Department confirmed today.

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/0912/Killing-of-US-envoy-to-Libya-underscores-threat-of-unchecked-religious-fanaticism

In a video released by the State Department when Mr. Stevens was appointed ambassador to Libya after Qaddafi’s ouster, he said he “quickly grew to love this part of the world” when he spent two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco after graduating from the University of California at Berkeley. In the video, which has Arabic subtitles, he said he looked forward to returning to Libya and hoped the US could partner with the newly independent country on issues like health care and education.