Hillary Clinton Email Scandal: State Department Releases First Set of Private Emails

Hundreds of emails from Hillary Clinton’s private server – many relating to the 2012 attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya – have been released by the State Department.

The emails were previously provided to a congressional committee.

The former secretary of state has constantly defended her use of the private account since the launch of her presidential campaign.

More of Hillary Clinton’s emails are set to be released in the coming weeks.

This first batch is just a fraction of the approximately 55,000 emails that the State Department is currently reviewing for release.

The State Department and Hillary Clinton have been subject to intense scrutiny by a congressional committee which is investigating the attack on a US diplomatic facility in Benghazi, during which Ambassador Christopher Stevens was killed.

State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said in a statement ahead of the release: “The emails we release today do not change the essential facts or our understanding of the events before, during or after the attacks.”

The New York Times has reviewed some of the emails ahead of the release and reported that they “appear to back up Mrs. Clinton’s previous assertions that she did not receive classified information at her private email address”.

The newspaper said that many of the emails detail Hillary Clinton’s concerns following the attack.

They also offer a snapshot of Hillary Clinton’s private life, including her radio listening preferences and compliments she received from a colleague regarding a photo in the press.

According to the State Department, Hillary Clinton did not have a government email address from 2009 to 2013.