Benghazi Review Blames 'Systemic Failures' At State Department

An independent review board appointed by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has faulted the State Department for "grossly inadequate" security to deal with the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks that led to the death of U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans.

Members of the board gave testimony on their findings in a closed door session before the House and Senate foreign affairs committees on Wednesday.

In its public report, the board said that while the attacks on the U.S. compound in Benghazi were "unanticipated in their scale and intensity," there were also "systemic failures and leadership and management deficiencies at senior levels" in the State Department, which resulted in inadequate security for the mission in Benghazi.

State Department officials are expected to testify in an open hearing on Thursday with Deputy Secretary of State William Burns, who is in charge of policy, and Deputy Secretary of State Thomas Nides, who is in charge of management.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has accepted all the review's findings but will not testify because she is under a doctor's order of bed rest, while recovering from a concussion she suffered after fainting because of a stomach flu.