National Press Club to Host "NEWSMAKER" Media Briefing on Embassy Security in the Aftermath of Benghazi with Ambassador Prudence Bushnell

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Feb 27, 2013, 11:52 ET

WASHINGTON, Feb. 27, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Ambassador Bushnell will address the recent attack in Benghazi – where the deaths of the U.S. Ambassador and other officials put a harsh spotlight on a number of fundamental issues affecting U.S. embassies: Can the State Department make its diplomats more secure and can embassies be protected from armed attack? How are security threats to embassies assessed? Which diplomatic postings benefit – and which do not – when budgets are cut? What responsibilities do senior career and political officials in Washington have for security issues? What should a smart security policy look like? Can the independent review boards set up to investigate attacks (such as those in Kenya, Libya and Tanzania) make a difference?

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Prudence Bushnell was chief of mission in Nairobi, Kenya in 1998, when Al Qaeda members, under orders from Osama bin Laden, exploded a massive truck bomb outside the U.S. embassy there. The blast killed 213 people, including 44 U.S. government employees. Despite superficial injuries, Bushnell played a major role in the rescue work. After Kenya, Bushnell served as U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala (1999- 2002) and as dean of the Leadership School at the Foreign Service Institute. She is currently the CEO of Sage Associates, a consulting firm.

This National Press Club Newsmakers news conference is scheduled for 10 a.m., Tuesday, March 5, 2013 in the club's Zenger Room on the 13^th Floor of the National Press Building, 529 14^th St., NW, Washington, D.C.

SOURCE National Press Club