A Libyan was convicted for planning the 2012 Benghazi attack that killed 4 Americans, but in a surprise, he was acquitted of murder charges

A former militia leader from Libya was convicted on Tuesday of terrorism charges arising from the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, that killed a United States ambassador and three other Americans. But he was acquitted of the most serious offense, murder.

The defendant, Ahmed Abu Khattala, 46, was the first person charged and successfully prosecuted in the attacks, which took on broader significance as Republicans and conservative news outlets sought to use them to damage the presidential ambitions of Hillary Clinton, who was then the secretary of state. But the seven-week trial in federal court in Washington received relatively little attention from such quarters.

Read More »