US State Dept officials resign under pressure over Benghazi killings

WASHINGTON (REUTERS) - Three senior United States (US) State Department officials were asked to resign after an official inquiry harshly criticised their offices for failing to provide adequate security at the US mission in Benghazi, Libya, before it came under attack in September, a US official said on Wednesday.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Mr Eric Boswell, the assistant secretary for diplomatic security; one of his deputies, Ms Charlene Lamb; and an unnamed official in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs were asked to step down because of the inquiry panel's report, which did not fault Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in connection with the attack.

State Department officials declined to comment on the matter, saying it was a personnel issue. The Associated Press first reported that the three officials had resigned.

An unclassified version of the report released Tuesday by the State Department concluded that the mission was completely unprepared to deal with a Sept 11 attack that killed US Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans..