The State Department signed a six-figure deal with a British firm to protect the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya just four months before a sustained attack on the compound killed four U.S. nationals inside.
Contrary to Friday’s claim by State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland that “at no time did we contract with a private security firm in Libya,” the department inked a contract for “security guards and patrol services” on May 3 for $387,413.68. An extension option brought the tab for protecting the consulate to $783,000. The contract lists only “foreign security awardees” as its recipient. ...
The final modification to the contract came on June 15. It is unknown when Blue Mountain contractors arrived to help secure the consulate. The State Department would not specify how many guards Blue Mountain had posted in Benghazi during last week’s attack. (A department official said that Nuland misspoke about State not hiring private guards in Libya.)
http://times247.com/articles/state-dept-hired-private-security-before-benghazi-attack