More Marines needed for U.S. Embassy security, report finds
WASHINGTON -- Attempts to strengthen security at diplomatic posts with U.S. Marines have fallen short, according to a new report by the State Department's Office of Inspector General.
In January 2013, following the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, Congress pushed for a total overhaul of security at U.S. embassies and authorized a new deployment of 1,000 additional Marines for 50 high and medium-risk U.S. diplomatic posts. But according to the IG's report, only 25 posts received new detachments. And 15 of these new deployments were for low or medium threat postings, not for high threat posts.
In the report, the Inspector General indicated that the State Department was delaying the Marine postings because there was no housing for the Marines on site. All Marine detachments require secure Marine housing, a Commander's office, a change/response room and a watch post.
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According to Marine Security Guard officials unnamed in the report, posts with low threats are selected based on the readiness to house a detachment. It costs $15 million to activate a detachment at a new post.
The report criticizes the department saying the agency has only made, "modest contributions to strengthening security for personnel in high risk, high threat posts," and has made "limited progress in the critical area of adding new [Marine] detachments to...posts that were most in need of additional security."
Former U.S. Undersecretary of State for Management Grant Green told CBS News, "It's a nice gesture, but if you're not going to send them where there's a high threat, I don't know what sense it makes," and sending them elsewhere, he said, would be, "a waste of bodies."