Department of State News

The Daily Signal reports on Department of State news with analysis and commentary on American diplomacy, foreign policy decisions, embassy operations, international agreements, and the State Department’s role in advancing U.S. interests abroad.
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  • opinion

    State Department Stonewalling Has Made for a Tough Year for the Benghazi Select Committee
    It’s been a year since the House Select Committee on Benghazi began its work, and although the committee has produced an interim report and its share of headlines, it has not come close to completing its mission. And, according to the committee, most of the delay can be traced to the snail’s-pace response from the…
    Helle Dale
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  • news

    Emails Show State Department Aides Knew Early On Benghazi Attack Had Terror Ties
    On Sept.11, 2012, State Department aides knew that the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya was under attack by armed assailants and soon after, that a terrorist group was claiming credit for the attack, according to documents from the U.S. Department of State obtained by Judicial Watch and released Thursday. “These emails leave no doubt that…
    Kate Scanlon
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  • opinion

    Has the State Department Learned the Lessons of Benghazi?
    A Veteran’s Day feature from the Associated Press showcased the improved training of diplomatic security agents, with a view to demonstrating that the lessons of Benghazi have been absorbed by the State Department. In a simulation in a location in Virginia dubbed Erehwon (“nowhere” spelled backwards), State Department security staff beat back an attack resembling the attack on the ill-fated U.S. consulate in Benghazi…
    Helle Dale
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  • opinion

    The Not So Cold War: State Department Bans Ice Bucket Challenge for Diplomats
    With terrorists running rampant in Iraq and Russian convoys violating Ukrainian borders, the U.S. State Department is fussing over a new unnerving threat: its own diplomats taking the “Ice Bucket challenge.” The ice bucket challenge is this summer’s social media fad with a philanthropic twist (donations go to the ALS Foundation, which funds research to…
    Helle Dale
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  • opinion

    State Department Rejects Most Critical Security Recommendations Post-Benghazi
    The State Department released a report earlier this month on implementation of the Best Practices Panel’s (BPP) recommendations on diplomatic security. Interestingly, the two most important ones were rejected by the State Department. The panel of five seasoned security experts was established according to the recommendation of the Benghazi Accountability Review Board (ARB). The BPP…
    Helle Dale
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  • news

    State Department: Meriam Ibrahim Ishag Only ‘Temporarily Detained’
    It was another long and uncertain day for Meriam Ibrahim Ishag, the 27-year-old Christian mom sentenced to death in Sudan for refusing to renounce her faith. After being released from prison and having her death sentence lifted yesterday, she and her family were arrested by Sudanese officials earlier today at the Khartoum airport. But a…
    Melissa Quinn
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  • news

    Megyn Kelly Takes Down State Department Spokeswoman on Obama’s Iraq Rhetoric
    Megyn Kelly went on offense last night. On “The Kelly File,” she aggressively questioned a State Department spokeswoman, Marie Harf, on what the Fox News anchor said was President Obama’s inconsistent stance on Iraq. At minute 7, Kelly backs Harf into a corner as the spokeswoman tries to defend Obama’s contradictory, on-the-record comments.
    Kelsey Bolar
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