13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi (39 page)

After Benghazi, the contract operators returned to their homes, their families, and their lives, until now remaining silent as they made decisions about their futures. All have retired from government security contracting for work in the private sector. Mark “Oz” Geist, Kris “Tanto” Paronto, and John “Tig” Tiegen have used their real names in this book. The names Jack Silva and Dave “D.B.” Benton are pseudonyms, used to satisfy their hope of preserving their families’ privacy and their own. The only other pseudonym was for Henry, the Annex translator. All other information about the pseudonymous characters is true. Names of all other individuals in the book were disclosed previously in congressional testimony and other public forums.

In Germany after the attacks (l to r): Dave “D.B.” Benton, Kris “Tanto” Paronto, John “Tig” Tiegen, and Jack Silva
(Courtesy of Kris Paronto)

Looking ahead, the surviving Benghazi operators know that the events of those thirteen hours will color the rest of their lives. They remain in close contact, and all wear black aluminum bracelets etched with the names of the two
fallen operators, along with the location and date of their deaths.

Above all, the surviving special operators hope that Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty, to whom this book is collectively dedicated, will be remembered not as victims or political pawns, but as brave Americans who put themselves in harm’s way, who believed in their work and their country, and who died serving others.

The Compound before September 11, 2012. At the top right is the main gate; at the top left is the building converted into a barracks for 17 February militia guards. (State Department photo)