About 150 personnel, including 80 US Marines who were providing security at the embassy, were evacuated early Saturday and were escorted across the border into Tunisia, in an operation that lasted for about five hours.
US officials said that operations at the embassy have been “temporarily suspended” until “the security situation on the ground improves.” The embassy will continue to operate from other locations.
“Securing our facilities and ensuring the safety of our personnel are top department priorities, and we did not make this decision lightly,” State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said in a statement. “Regrettably, we had to take this step because the location of our embassy is in very close proximity to intense fighting and ongoing violence between armed Libyan factions.”
Heavy fighting between the military and rival militia groups in Libya has killed dozens in recent weeks.
Since an uprising three years ago that ousted former dictator Muammar Qaddafi from power, the government has been struggling to take control and provide security throughout Libya.
In September 11, 2012, US Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed in attacks on US government facilities in Benghazi, Libya’s second largest city.
The attacks, which were initially blamed on a US-made anti-Islamic video, spurred controversy in Washington. Republican lawmakers have accused the Obama administration of failing to provide security for US personnel and efforts to cover up the cause of the assaults.
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