*EPF404 10/19/00
Defense Department Report, Thursday, October 19
(Cole update) (680)

RECOVERING REMAINS, STABILIZING SHIP ARE CURRENT PRIORITIES

Providing an update of Navy activities one week after an explosion seriously crippled the USS Cole in the Yemeni port of Aden, Pentagon spokesman Ken Bacon said the current priorities are recovering the remains of the sailors who were killed, stabilizing the ship, and proceeding with the FBI investigation into the cause and motive of the apparent terrorist incident.

During the regular October 19 Defense Department briefing, the spokesman said eight more sets of human remains will be flown from Bahrain to Dover, Delaware on October 20. Seventeen sailors were killed and 39 injured when a small boat pulled aside the destroyer and then exploded. He said the Navy is making "good progress" in freeing the last four sets of remains from the crippled ship.

Bacon said the next event will be the Cole's return to the United States. That process is taking a bit longer than anticipated, he said, because of the time involved in outfitting the commercial ship that will help bring it home. The return sail from Aden is expected to begin in November and the journey will take about a month.

Bacon also announced that Defense Secretary Cohen has appointed a panel to look into the lessons learned from the October 12 attack on the destroyer. The Cole panel will be co-chaired by retired Army General William Crouch, the former Army vice chief of staff, and Navy Admiral Harold Gehman, former commander-in-chief of the U.S. Joint Forces Command. The purpose of their investigation is to "reduce the chances that we will be subject to another terrorist attack like this," he said, by examining all aspects of the tragedy and distilling the lessons that can be drawn from it.

This will be the third investigation focusing on the Cole attack. There is the overall FBI investigation based in Aden, a Navy investigation focusing on what happened exclusively aboard the ship, and the broader Cole panel that will examine the series of decisions that led to sending the ship to Aden for refueling, including the intelligence assessment that was available at that time and the operating rules of engagement being used by the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) -- to which responsibility for the destroyer was assigned -- when the attack occurred.

Prompted by a reporter's question, Bacon said there is "no clear link" between the attack on the Cole and violent political unrest in Israel between Palestinians and Israelis. "As the FBI investigation continues we'll learn more about what happened and ... how it was orchestrated," the spokesman said, but the early evidence makes it look like planning for the attack was "in the works for some time, probably long before the recent frictions between Israel and the Palestinian authority."

The spokesman's remarks were made on the same day that former CENTCOM commander Anthony Zinni testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee on his decision -- made well before he retired from the military this year -- to send U.S. ships on refueling missions to Aden. Asked about Zinni's October 19 testimony, the spokesman said the former Marine Corps commander provided a clear description of how he and others made the decision to go to Aden. Twenty-seven ships had sailed into the Yemeni port to refuel over an 18 month period, Bacon said. He also said Zinni made clear that refueling in the region is never risk free.

Bacon was asked if CENTCOM, the Navy and the Cole were aware of reports that accused terrorist Osama Bid Laden had appeared on Qatari television on September 27 threatening to attack U.S. ships. He said this is the kind of question that the Navy investigation and the Cole panel will examine.

The Cole panel will begin assembling a staff during the fourth week of October with a view toward completing its investigation as soon as possible, according to Bacon.

(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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