J. Christopher Stevens

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Chris Stevens
Ambassador christopher stevens.jpg
10th United States Ambassador to Libya
In office
June 7, 2012 – September 12, 2012
President Barack Obama
Preceded by Gene Cretz
Succeeded by Laurence Pope (Chargé d’Affaires)[1]
Personal details
Born John Christopher Stevens
(1960-04-18)April 18, 1960[2]
Grass Valley, California, U.S.
Died September 12, 2012(2012-09-12) (aged 52)
Benghazi, Libya
Nationality American
Alma mater University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Hastings College of the Law
National War College
Profession Diplomat, lawyer

John Christopher Stevens (April 18, 1960 – September 12, 2012) was an American diplomat and lawyer who served as the U.S. Ambassador to Libya from June 2012 to September 12, 2012.[3][4] Stevens was killed when the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, was attacked on September 11, 2012.[5][3]

Contents

Early life and education [edit]

Stevens was born in 1960, in Grass Valley, California, the eldest of three siblings born to Jan S. Stevens, a California Assistant Attorney General,[6] and his wife Mary (née Floris) J. Stevens, a Chinook Indian and cousin of Chinook elder Catherine Troeh.[7][8] Stevens had two younger siblings, Anne (b. 1962) and Thomas (b. 1965); all were raised in Northern California.[9] Stevens and his siblings are direct descendants of Chinook Chief Comcomly.[10][11]

Stevens' parents divorced in 1975, and both remarried. He had a half-sister, Hilary (b. 1980), from his father's second marriage.[6] His mother, a cellist, joined the Marin Symphony Orchestra (1976—2004),[12] and in 1976 married Robert Commanday, a music critic with the San Francisco Chronicle.[13][14]

Stevens was an AFS Intercultural Programs exchange student in Spain during summer of 1977, and graduated from Piedmont High School [15] in 1978. He earned a B.A. in history in 1982 at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was a member of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. From 1983 to 1985, he taught English as a Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco. He graduated with a J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1989, and received an M.S. degree from the National War College in 2010. He spoke English, Arabic, and French.

Prior to joining the United States Foreign Service, Stevens was an international trade lawyer based in Washington, D.C.[4] He was admitted as an active member of the State Bar of California on January 26, 1990; he went on inactive status on August 1, 1991, and remained an inactive member for the remainder of his career.[16]

U.S. Foreign Service [edit]

Stevens joined the United States Foreign Service in 1991. His early overseas assignments included: deputy principal officer and political section chief in Jerusalem; political officer in Damascus; consular/political officer in Cairo; and consular/economic officer in Riyadh. In Washington, Stevens served as Director of the Office of Multilateral Nuclear and Security Affairs; Pearson Fellow with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; special assistant to the Under Secretary for Political Affairs; Iran desk officer; and staff assistant in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs.

He had served in Libya twice previously: as the Deputy Chief of Mission (from 2007 to 2009) and as Special Representative to the National Transitional Council (from March 2011 to November 2011) during the Libyan revolution. He arrived in Tripoli in May 2012 as the U.S. Ambassador to Libya.[4]

Death [edit]

Main article: 2012 U.S. Consulate attack in Benghazi

Stevens was the first U.S. ambassador to die in office since the 1988 aircrash in Pakistan which killed Arnold Lewis Raphel; he was the eighth U.S. Ambassador to be killed in the line of duty.[17] Obama Administration officials claimed that the attack was a spontaneous response to an online preview of a movie considered offensive to Muslims, but the attackers' use of military-grade weapons (including RPGs) and apparent knowledge of the locations of the secret safe house sites led to speculation that the raid was pre-planned. Libyan officials suggested that it might have been a revenge attack mounted by loyalists of Muammar Gaddafi, who were defeated (and Gaddafi killed) in the Libyan civil war the previous year.[18] Later indications added support to the view that the attack was coordinated and planned in advance, with any protests merely incidental or diversionary.[19] Libyan president Muhammad Magariaf blamed elements of Ansar al-Sharia for the killing, linking them to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. According to a Libyan-American witness, "There was no demonstration. They came with machine guns, with rockets."[20]

One of the rocket propelled grenades reportedly created a fire in the main consulate building with three Americans inside — Stevens, Sean Smith, and a security officer.[21] According to U.S. officials, the security officer escaped and the staff found Smith dead. However, the staff were unable to locate Ambassador Stevens before being driven from the building under small-arms fire.[21] Stevens apparently became separated from his staff while trying to escape to the roof and was ultimately overcome by smoke inhalation.[22][23] Local civilians found Stevens and brought him to the Benghazi Medical Centre in a state of cardiac arrest. Medical personnel tried to resuscitate him, but he was pronounced dead at about 2 a.m. local time.[21]

The surviving Americans were taken to a safe house. A rescue squad consisting of eight U.S. military or former military was sent from Tripoli, the capital. They were ambushed and the safe house came under attack. Two more Americans died, including one sent from Tripoli; several were wounded.[21][24][25] Later reports identified the victims as Tyrone S. Woods and Glen A. Doherty, both ex-Navy SEALs working as security and intelligence contractors.[26][27]

According to the Daily Mail News Online, Ambassador Stevens had sent out a diplomatic cable expressing concerns, on the day he was killed, that security at Benghazi was compromised.[28] Stevens stated that two Libyan security groups were threatening to withdraw over a disagreement on U.S. Policy whether centrist politician Mahmoud Jibril would become Libya's prime minister.

See also [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ "New US Charge D'Affairs starts his work in Libya". 10 October 2012. Retrieved 12 October 2012. 
  2. ^ "California birth index search". FamilyTreeLegends.com. Retrieved September 11, 2012. 
  3. ^ a b "US ambassador 'killed in Libya'". BBC News. September 11, 2012. Retrieved September 11, 2012. 
  4. ^ a b c "Stevens, J. Christopher". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved September 11, 2012. 
  5. ^ Margaret Coker (September 11, 2012). "U.S. Ambassador to Libya Is Killed". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved September 11, 2012. 
  6. ^ a b "Stevens Remembered as a Man Who Cared Deeply for Libya". Salt Lake City Tribune. September 11, 2012. 
  7. ^ "Slain ambassador was member of local Chinook Tribe" Chinook Observer. Sep 13, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
  8. ^ "President Obama, Hillary Clinton pay tribute to slain Chinook member Stevens." Chinook Observer, Sep 14, 2012. Retrieved September 15, 2012.
  9. ^ Matt Bewig (March 18, 2012). "Ambassador to Libya: Who Is Chris Stevens?". allgov.com. Retrieved September 11, 2012. 
  10. ^ Katherine Long (September 25/26, 2012). "Sister of U.S. ambassador recalls 'good brother,' good man". seattletimes.com. Retrieved September 26, 2012. 
  11. ^ Jenni Monet (2012-09-28). "Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens’ Mother Spells Out Family Legacy". Indian Country Today Media Network. Retrieved 2012-09-29. 
  12. ^ The death of Chris Stevens, U.S. Ambassador to Libya, hits close to home.
  13. ^ California Marriage Index, 1960-1985, accessed on ancestry.com on September 17, 2012
  14. ^ "Slain Ambassador Chris Stevens was `A Very Smart, Very Funny Guy' says Cal Roommate Austin Tichenor". Napa Patch. September 11, 2012. 
  15. ^ Anita Creamer, The Sacramento Bee. "Slain U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens had Northern California roots | McClatchy". Mcclatchydc.com. Retrieved October 11, 2012. 
  16. ^ State Bar of California, Attorney Profile for John Christopher Stevens – #145822. Retrieved September 13, 2012.
  17. ^ "US ambassadors killed in the line of duty". Boston.com. Retrieved September 11, 2012. 
  18. ^ http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/12/us-libya-usa-attack-loyalists-idUSBRE88B0K920120912.  Missing or empty |title= (help)
  19. ^ CBS/AP. "U.S. officials: Deadly Libya attack likely planned". CBS News. Retrieved September 11, 2012. 
  20. ^ Benghazi raid leaves cradle of Libyan revolution fearing for its future The Guardian September 21, 2012
  21. ^ a b c d "In Libya, deadly fury took U.S. envoys by surprise". Reuters. Retrieved September 13, 2012. 
  22. ^ Ambassador, victims got separated trying to escape to roof during attack. CNN September 11, 2012
  23. ^ Kevin Dolak, Dean Schabner, Enjoli Francis and Anthony Castellano (September 11, 2012). "Ambassador to Libya Killed By 'Small and Savage Group'". ABC News. Retrieved September 11, 2012. 
  24. ^ Libya: Assault on U.S. consulate in Benghazi leaves 4 dead, including U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens CBS News September 11, 2012
  25. ^ US confirms ambassador killed in Benghazi Libya BBC News September 11, 2012
  26. ^ "Statement on the Deaths of Tyrone S. Woods and Glen A. Doherty in Benghazi, Libya". U.S. Department of State. September 13, 2012. Retrieved September 14, 2012. 
  27. ^ "Two SEAL vets from SD killed in Libya". U-T San Diego. Retrieved September 14, 2012. 
  28. ^ Gye, Hugo (10-08-2012). "Revealed: Ambassador to Libya told officials of security worries on day he died in consulate raid as special forces chief says he asked for 'more not less' back-up month before attack". Daily Mail News Online. Retrieved 10-10-2012. 

External links [edit]
Topics
U.S. casualties
Attackers
Afghanistan
Australia
Israel
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