Biden Counterterror Pick Left Beirut Embassy Unprotected After Soleimani Strike - Reports

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - President Joe Biden’s nominee for the State Department’s lead counterterrorism position left the US embassy in Beirut unprotected after the the United States killed Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani, Politico reported on Monday.

Elizabeth Richard, who previously served as US Ambassador to Lebanon, turned away a small military force deployed to Beirut for the protection of the embassy after the US military killed Soleimani in a drone strike in January 2020, the report said citing US officials and congressional aides.

Richard made the decision to send the Quick Response Force (QRF) back without sufficient coordination with higher-ups, nine former US officials and current congressional aides said.

Richard purportedly made the decision in order not to attract attention from Hezbollah, because there was no space to house the QRF and also because she believed the embassy was secure without the QRF in place, the report said.

The decision was made despite intelligence indicating specific threats against the Beirut embassy following Soleimani’s assassination, the report also said. Richard also made the decision without consulting then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other top officials, the report added.

One former US official said that the move was “perceived as an act of insubordination,” but by the time Pompeo could overrule Richard’s decision, the QRF was already finalizing their return to base, according to the report.

Richard will appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday for a confirmation hearing to lead the State Department’s counterterrorism efforts.