US attorney general says ‘key participant’ in 2012 Benghazi attack arrested

​Zubayar ‌al-Bakoush facing charges related to killing of US ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other US citizens.Published On 6 Feb 2026United States Attorney General Pam Bondi has said a “key participant” in the 2012 attack on the US embassy in Benghazi, Libya, has been arrested.The attack on a US diplomatic compound and nearby CIA annexe left four US citizens dead, including US Ambassador J Christopher Stevens.Bondi said Zubayar ‌al-Bakoush had been extradited to the US ‌and will face ‌murder, ⁠arson- and “terrorism”-related charges.“We have never forgotten those heroes,” Bondi said of those killed, “and we have never stopped seeking justice for that crime against our nation.”“We will prosecute this alleged terrorist to the fullest extent of the law,” she said.Al-Bakoush’s alleged involvement in the attack, which came amid widespread antigovernment protests and insecurity in Libya following the overthrow and killing of longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, was not immediately clear.Another man, Ahmed Abu Khatallah, had previously been convicted by the US and is currently serving a 28-year sentence after being taken into custody in 2017.US prosecutors said Abu Khatallah led an armed group in Libya and ordered the attack, which began on September 11, 2012. Abu Khatallah was cleared of murder charges, but convicted of four other “terrorism” related charges in the case.Another Libyan national, Mustafa al-Imam, was convicted in connection with the attack in 2020.The other US citizens killed in the attack included government personnel Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty.The killings led to a series of US congressional investigations into security lapses leading to the killings, particularly focusing on the role of former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.