Benghazi ‘mastermind’ Ahmed Abu Khatallah resentenced to 28 years in prison

Ahmed Abu Khatallah, the Libyan militia leader convicted for his role in the deadly 2012 terrorist attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, was resentenced Thursday to 28 years in prison, despite prosecutors seeking at least 60 years to life.

The new sentence comes more than two years after a federal appeals court in Washington, DC, ruled that his original sentence of 22 years was “unreasonably low” and ordered the judge who imposed it to resentence him.

Federal prosecutors had been seeking a new sentence of life in prison or at least 60 years, but US District Judge Christopher Cooper instead tacked on just six more years to Khatallah’s sentence, saying he did not think the crimes for which he was convicted warranted a substantially higher prison term.

Khatallah was convicted in 2018 on four federal charges stemming from his involvement in the attack: Conspiracy to provide material support and resources to terrorists; providing material support and resources to terrorists; destroying a federal building; and carrying a semiautomatic assault weapon during a crime of violence.

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