| Philo Dibble | |
| Birth Date: | September 10, 1951 |
| Birth Place: | Alexandria, Egypt |
| Death Date: | October 1, 2011 (aged 60) |
| Death Place: | McLean, Virginia, U.S. |
| Education: | Sidwell Friends School Woodrow Wilson High School |
| Occupation: | Diplomat |
| Spouse: | Elizabeth Dibble |
| Children: | 3 |
| Parents: | Philo Tolman Dibble Cleopatra Bolens |
Philo Louis Dibble (September 10, 1951 – October 1, 2011) was an American diplomat.
Dibble was born on September 10, 1951, in Alexandria, Egypt.[1] [2] He was named for his father, Philo Tolman Dibble, who was also a diplomat.[1] [2]
Dibble attended the Sidwell Friends School and graduated from the Woodrow Wilson High School.[2] He graduated from St. John's College in 1976.[1] [2] He went to graduate school at Johns Hopkins University, where he earned a master's degree in international studies in 1980.[1] [2]
Dibble joined the United States Foreign Service in 1980.[1] [2] He served as a diplomat in Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Pakistan, Syria and Lebanon. He served in Lebanon shortly after the 1983 United States embassy bombing.[1] He was retired from 2006 to 2010.[2]
Dibble returned to the Foreign Service in September 2010, when he was appointed as the deputy assistant secretary of state for Iran for the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs.[2] Dibble was instrumental in the release, in September 2011, of two American hikers who had been held in Iran for two years.[2] Shane Bauer and Joshua Fattal were released from Iranian capture after two years in September 2011. Dibble, along with a team of U.S. Department of State officials negotiated their release. He used his connections with diplomats from Oman and Switzerland to secure their release.[1]
Dibble was married to Elizabeth Dibble, née Elizabeth Link.[1] They had three daughters.[2] They resided in McLean, Virginia.[2]
Dibble died of a heart attack on October 1, 2011, aged 60.[1] [2] His funeral, held at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church, was attended by hundreds of people, including U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.[1] [3]