Benghazi in Crisis

For most people, the name “Benghazi” is synonymous with the 2012 assault on the U.S. consulate in the titular Libyan city and the ensuing partisan U.S. political controversy over Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's role as then-Secretary of State. But the PBS-aired Frontline documentary Benghazi in Crisis examines the bigger picture of Libya's collapse into chaos following the 2011 overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi, which resulted in a power vacuum that led to a civil war in which 100,000 people were displaced amidst the rise of ISIS as the reigning power in this section of North Africa. Journalist Feras Kilani (who also serves as director), here embedded in an anti-Islamist militia just outside of Benghazi, provides a very rare first-hand account of the seemingly endless military combat that pits a patchwork of rival militias and the none-too-efficient Libyan army against ISIS. As a bonus, the DVD also features a second Frontline documentary centered on an Islamic world conflict, Yemen Under Siege, in which journalist Safa Al Ahmad (also doubling as director) brings her camera to the besieged city of Taiz to document the wreckage caused by that nation's civil war. Al Ahmad also faces distinctive safety issues as a female journalist in a war zone where Western-style inclusionary considerations are conspicuously absent. Both documentaries offer a bitter reminder of crises that most U.S. media outlets would prefer to ignore. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)