9:35 to 10:30 p.m. The consulate alarm goes off and Libyan guards call for backup as militants gain access to the compound. "They fire rocket-propelled grenades into the main building. Mr. Stevens, [computer technician] Sean Smith and an American security officer are inside," reports The Times. "The security officer makes it outside. He returns to rescue the others and finds Mr. Smith dead but does not find Mr. Stevens." At 10 p.m., the consulate is burning in flames and, according to the Journal, the security officer was joined by Libyan government reinforcements who just arrived. "They guard front and rear gates as militants begin to crowd at rear gate. U.S. and Libyan guards enter burning building." The guards were also unable to find Ambassador Stevens.
2 a.m. This is where phase two of the attack is reported to have begun and where evidence emerges, according to some observers, that the attack was pre-planned and coordinated. "As the staff is preparing to leave the second compound, it comes under fire. More than 20 staff members retreat to a building at the back of the compound," reports the Times. Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty, both American security officers, were killed in the shootout. Describing the confrontation, the Times says "The attackers had lain in wait, silently observing as the rescuers, including eight State Department civilians who had just landed at the airport in Benghazi, arrived in large convoys. This second attack was shorter in duration than the first, but more complex and sophisticated. It was an ambush."
