Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will finally testify before Congress next week about September's deadly attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.

Clinton will appear before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on January 23. She was to have appeared last month, but illness forced the delay.

Republican committee chairman, Congressman Ed Royce of California, says it is important to learn as much as possible about what happened in Benghazi to ensure that such an attack does not happen again.

Armed Islamic militants overran the consulate on September 11, killing U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans.

Royce says he wants Clinton to explain why officials did not anticipate the attack, and what can be done to boost security at diplomatic facilities.

An independent panel found failures in the State Department offices responsible for security.

Clinton was forced to curtail her official duties for weeks after she fell ill with a viral ailment, then fainted and suffered a concussion. She subsequently was hospiotalized for treatment of a blood clot on the brain that may have been caused by her fall.