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Marine who helped save Benghazi attack survivors discusses latest attack in Baghdad

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.- In light of Tuesday's attack at a U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, we sat down with Marine sergeant John Tiegen who helped defend the Libyan consulate in Benghazi in 2012.

Tiegen who was a military contractor at the time of the Benghazi attack says the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad is a fortress meant to withstand the most harrowing attacks. "It is one of the most fortified embassy's the U.S. has. I mean they built it to withstand rocket attacks, mortar attacks," Tiegen says.

However, it wasn't rocket-propelled grenades, mortars or gunfire that led to the embassy being overrun, it was a protest that grew out of control. Similar to happened in Benghazi. That's where he says the similarities between the two end. "I mean this is an attack but it was not an attack like they did in Benghazi," Tiegen says, "I didn't see any AK's, I didn't see RPG's going."

In Baghdad, dozens of Iraqi militiamen and their supporters breached the compound, but what's worrisome about this for Teigen is that U.S. allies the Iraqi Forces who were assigned to protect the embassy let those protesters through. Tiegen says it has fractured the relationship between the two groups, "A huge breach of trust, they had to cross multiple security check points before they even got to the U.S. Embassy and they were allowed to pass right through."

However, one major improvement that transpired in 2012, was the government sending dozens of marines to the embassy as reinforcements as well as Apache helicopters. "They never once sent any reinforcements to Benghazi, not once," Tiegen says.

Tiegen says those marines are ready for anything and will work on protecting those still at the embassy and recovering classified information.

"Their hearts are pumping, they are trying to get their gear ready, trying to get all the personnel located get them to safe zones and go to their fighting positions," Tiegen says.

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Chase Golightly

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