13 Hours Author Refutes CIA Stand-down Controversy Claim

The author of the book 13 Hours, Mitchell Zuckoff, has refuted a CIA claim that his story distorted events, particularly in regards to the “stand down” order that is portrayed in the movie the book is based on.

A spokesman for the CIA is criticizing the Michael Bay movie “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi” as a “distortion of the events and people who served in Benghazi that night.”

The spokesman, Ryan Trapani, was quoted in an exclusive Washington Post story, which also features an interview with the CIA chief in Benghazi on Sept. 11, 2012, when Ambassador Chris Stevens and three others were killed in a siege of the diplomatic compound and attack on the CIA annex.

“No one will mistake this movie for a documentary,” Tripani told the Post. “It’s a distortion of the events and people who served in Benghazi that night. It’s shameful that, in order to highlight the heroism of some, those responsible for the movie felt the need to denigrate the courage of other Americans who served in harm’s way.”

Read below for Zuckoff’s response:

“The movie and book got it right. The CIA spokesman’s comments are predictable but not remotely credible.

“If you read “Bob’s” statements to the Washington Post, he would have us believe that he neither prevented the guys from leaving nor approved or ordered their departure. That’s nonsensical on its face and contradicted by facts and logic:

“Two of our named sources, John Tiegen and Kris Paronto, heard Bob say those words, stand down, which they shared with Jack and D.B., who already understood that they were being held back. Our two key sources are on the record, with their names, while Bob remains shielded by anonymity.

SOFREP was the first to publish a detailed account of the Benghazi debacle in the New York Times Bestseller “Benghazi: The Definitive Report“. The authors conducted extensive interviews with staff from the CIA and Department of State, all interviews support Zuckoff’s statement.

“The irony is that the CIA Chief of Base (COB) was too afraid to act, so Navy SEAL Ty Woods took charge of the situation, and later the COB got an award for it all.”, a confidential source within the CIA told SOFREP.

The CIA’s business is to lie, so this “official” statement comes as no surprise.