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| Lone Suspect Held in Benghazi Attack Is Freed in Tunisia | Lone Suspect Held in Benghazi Attack Is Freed in Tunisia |
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| CAIRO — The only known suspect jailed in connection with the deadly attack on the United States diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, was freed on Tuesday by the Tunisian authorities who had held him. His lawyer said he was released for lack of evidence. | CAIRO — The only known suspect jailed in connection with the deadly attack on the United States diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, was freed on Tuesday by the Tunisian authorities who had held him. His lawyer said he was released for lack of evidence. |
| The release dramatized the negligible progress in any investigation into the attack, which killed Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans on Sept. 11 last year. The feebleness of Libya’s transitional government since the fall of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi has stymied any progress, despite what Benghazi residents describe as an abundance of leads. | The release dramatized the negligible progress in any investigation into the attack, which killed Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans on Sept. 11 last year. The feebleness of Libya’s transitional government since the fall of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi has stymied any progress, despite what Benghazi residents describe as an abundance of leads. |
| The man released Tuesday, Ali Harzi, 28, was detained in October at an airport in Turkey and was deported to his home country on suspicion of involvement in the attack. F.B.I. agents investigating the Benghazi attack and another on the United States Embassy in Tunis reportedly questioned Mr. Harzi in December, but it is not known if the questioning yielded relevant information. | The man released Tuesday, Ali Harzi, 28, was detained in October at an airport in Turkey and was deported to his home country on suspicion of involvement in the attack. F.B.I. agents investigating the Benghazi attack and another on the United States Embassy in Tunis reportedly questioned Mr. Harzi in December, but it is not known if the questioning yielded relevant information. |
| According to The Associated Press, Mr. Harzi’s lawyer, Anwar Oued-Ali, said his client’s release amounted to “correcting an irregular situation” because no evidence had been presented to substantiate any connection. | |
| The attack was filmed by surveillance cameras and observed by large crowds. Several Libyan and American guards who tried to defend the mission and saw the attackers survived. And several Libyan witnesses have identified at least one local Islamist militant seen leading the attack, Ahmed Abu Khattala, to journalists and American law enforcement agents. | The attack was filmed by surveillance cameras and observed by large crowds. Several Libyan and American guards who tried to defend the mission and saw the attackers survived. And several Libyan witnesses have identified at least one local Islamist militant seen leading the attack, Ahmed Abu Khattala, to journalists and American law enforcement agents. |
| But Mr. Abu Khattala remains at large in Benghazi. This week, in fact, he survived a vigilante assassination attempt; a car bomb reportedly killed the would-be assassin. | But Mr. Abu Khattala remains at large in Benghazi. This week, in fact, he survived a vigilante assassination attempt; a car bomb reportedly killed the would-be assassin. |
| Libya’s interim government has not disclosed the names of any other suspects or anyone else investigators might have held or even questioned in connection with the attack. And the Benghazi militias that provide the main law enforcement in the city have so far declined to take any action against Mr. Abu Khattala or the Islamist group most widely linked to the attack, Ansar al-Shariah, citing insufficient evidence. | Libya’s interim government has not disclosed the names of any other suspects or anyone else investigators might have held or even questioned in connection with the attack. And the Benghazi militias that provide the main law enforcement in the city have so far declined to take any action against Mr. Abu Khattala or the Islamist group most widely linked to the attack, Ansar al-Shariah, citing insufficient evidence. |
| An F.B.I. spokeswoman in Washington declined to comment Tuesday. The F.B.I. has identified several suspects it believes were behind the attacks but has struggled with its investigation amid the reluctance of the Libyan government, whose forces are lightly armed, to move against heavily armed extremists. | An F.B.I. spokeswoman in Washington declined to comment Tuesday. The F.B.I. has identified several suspects it believes were behind the attacks but has struggled with its investigation amid the reluctance of the Libyan government, whose forces are lightly armed, to move against heavily armed extremists. |
| The investigation has also been hampered by the tenuous security situation in Benghazi. Since the attacks, American investigators have led the investigation from Tripoli, the Libyan capital — more than 500 miles from Benghazi — and have returned to the city only a few times. | The investigation has also been hampered by the tenuous security situation in Benghazi. Since the attacks, American investigators have led the investigation from Tripoli, the Libyan capital — more than 500 miles from Benghazi — and have returned to the city only a few times. |
| Egyptian authorities in Cairo have said they detained a militant reported to have links to the Benghazi attacks, but United States officials have played down that connection and suggested that the Egyptians had many causes to arrest the militant. | Egyptian authorities in Cairo have said they detained a militant reported to have links to the Benghazi attacks, but United States officials have played down that connection and suggested that the Egyptians had many causes to arrest the militant. |
Michael S. Schmidt contributed reporting from Washington. | Michael S. Schmidt contributed reporting from Washington. |
| This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: | This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: |
| Correction: January 8, 2013 | Correction: January 8, 2013 |
An earlier version of this article misstated the timing of the assassination attempt on Ahmed Abu Khattala. It took place this week, not last. | An earlier version of this article misstated the timing of the assassination attempt on Ahmed Abu Khattala. It took place this week, not last. |