With the eyes of the U.S. media and lawmakers on Capitol Hill focusing on Thursday’s hearing into the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi which claimed the life of Ambassador Chris Stevens, I find myself in Tripoli for a three-day conference titled, “Libya Platform Peace: National Reconciliation, Security and constitution.” Among those attending: President Mohammed Magarief, Prime Minister Ali Zaydan, former armed revolutionaries, intelligence officials, and in a triumph for advancing women’s rights in Libya — newly elected female parliamentarians who now hold 16.5 percent of seats. This gathering comes at a critical time for unification of Libyans across all aspects of society who have — for the first time — agreed to work together to rebuild civil society from the ground up.

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