Clinton to testify on Jan 23 on Benghazi attack

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will appear before lawmakers on Jan 23 to be quizzed about the deadly attack on a US mission in Libya, just days before she steps aside as top US diplomat.

The chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr Ed Royce, announced the date in a statement late on Monday. A Republican senator last week said Mrs Clinton likely would make her appearance before Congress on Jan 22.

"My intention is for this hearing to focus on why this attack was not better anticipated, what leadership failures at the State Department existed, and what management deficiencies need to be corrected in order to better secure our diplomatic facilities abroad and protect our diplomats serving in them," wrote Mr Royce, a California Republican.

"It is important to learn all we can about what happened in Benghazi because at the end of the day, it could happen again," he added. "After all, Al-Qaeda plans attacks over and over again."