In losing Ambassador Stevens, U.S. loses an ace in Middle East

The World

Ambassador Chris Stevens was known as an exceptional diplomat who valued contact with regular people.

Many who worked with him years ago in Jerusalem were shocked to learn that Stevens was killed in the line of duty in Benghazi, Libya last week. He was political officer at the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem from 2002 to 2006, in addition to having served in Cairo, Damascus and Riyadh.

Veteran Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Stevens was an outstanding diplomat and a good friend. Erekat said he has had a hard time dealing with the news of his death.

“I was shocked,” he said. “The first thing I did, I called my wife because she knew him very well. And I told her the bad news and she wanted to know why. I said, ‘there’s no reason. He was just murdered in an ugly act of terror.’”

Erekat said what made Stevens such a successful diplomat was his ability to listen and learn from people in the Arab world.

“I sat with Chris hours upon hours speaking nothing but Arabic. He did a brilliant job to improve himself, to get acquainted with our society, to know our culture,” Erekat said. “And what was he doing here? He was helping us, and of course he was helping his country. But at the same time he was trying to re-build Libya. And for this you get killed? That’s despicable act of murder that deserves condemnation. That’s it.”

Daniel Seideman, an Israeli attorney in Jerusalem, also got to know Stevens closely during his time in Jerusalem. When Seideman heard that an American diplomat had been killed in Benghazi, he worried it was Stevens because his friend was the kind of diplomat who was always pushing the envelope.

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