The State Department has officially removed all government personnel from the Libyan city of Benghazi, closing the consulate building and possibly ending any chance of an on-site investigation of the attack there. Although it has been three weeks since the assault that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other embassy employees, the FBI has still not been able to visit the compound, set up any operations in the city, or even interview any witnesses who were present during the terrorist attack.

State says all U.S. personnel still in the country have been moved to the capital Tripoli and any "diplomatic outreach" will be done remotely.

The Washington Post reports that the main compound that was burned during the attack on September 11 was locked on Monday, but the buildings were empty and unguarded. Anything of value has been looted or picked through by local and journalists, and it's unlikely that investigators would find any useful evidence on site after such a long gap in time.

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at dbennett at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.
Dashiell Bennett