Libyan Islamist says he was at US consulate during attack

A Libyan militia commander who U.S officials say is under investigation in connection with the attacks on the American consulate in Benghazi which led to the death of the ambassador said he was present during the incident but was not one of the ringleaders.Some American newspapers have quoted unnamed Libyan officials as pointing to Ahmed Abu Khattala as the leader of the attacks on Sept, 11. The newspapers also reported that the officials said Abu Khattala’s whereabouts were unknown.U.S. government sources told Reuters that Abu Khattala is being investigated as a suspect in the Benghazi consulate attacks though U.S. investigators are not clear at this point if he played a role in leading or organising the attacks.The killings of Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three colleagues in Benghazi have become a flashpoint in the U.S. election campaign, with Republicans seizing on the issue to accuse President Barack Obama of failed leadership.In an interview, Abu Khattala told Reuters he had only heard he was a suspect through news media and was surprised that officials had told journalists he was at large.“These reports say that no one knows where I am and that I am hiding,” he said. “But here I am in the open, sitting in a hotel with you. I’m even going to pick up my sister’s kids from school soon.”Sitting with a friend in the restaurant of a Benghazi hotel, the 41-year-old, sporting a red felt hat and a full salt-and-pepper beard, laughed gently.A Libyan interior minister official close to the investigation told Reuters that a photograph was taken of Abu Khattala at the consulate at the time of the September 11 attacks but there was not enough evidence to arrest him.