Another round of the Washington Blame Game...
Blue Mountain, a Wales-based firm staffed by former special forces operatives, was hired by the US government to provide security at the consulate before it was overrun in an assault that killed the ambassador and three other Americans.
The company was paid only $387,413 (£239,683) by the US State Department for the year-long contract, less than the cost of deploying a single American soldier. In return, Blue Mountain assembled a force of local guards who were unable to protect Ambassador Chris Stevens or repel the coordinated attack on September 11. The five-man Libyan security team was unarmed and tasked with doing basic security checks rather than fighting off armed attackers. They were managed by a British employee of Blue Mountain, who left Benghazi shortly after the attack.
The firm's role has come under scrutiny as the State Department came under increasing pressure to explain why the site was so lightly-guarded despite the presence of militants in Benghazi and an earlier bomb attack on the compound. A Blue Mountain representative hung up when the Daily Telegraph contacted their headquarters. The State Department declined to comment. |