On September 11 , 2012 , the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi , Libya was attacked , resulting in the deaths of the United States Ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens , U.S. Foreign Service Information Management Officer Sean Smith , and two former Navy SEALS , Glen Doherty and Tyrone S. Woods . On September 16 , Rice appeared on CBS 's political TV show '' Face the Nation '' and ABC 's '' This Week '' to state that the attack was a direct result of a " heinous and offensive video " , and was spontaneous , not preplanned . She added ( on a different subject ) , " w e 've decimated al-Qaeda . " By contrast , Patrick F. Kennedy , the under secretary of state for management , had said prior to her interview that he believed the assault was planned , and other sources , including Libyan President Mohammed Magariaf , had expressed the view that the attack was pre-planned and that there was an al-Qaeda link
attacked
2012 Benghazi attack
Susan Rice