January 7, 1999
Web posted at: 10:12 p.m. EST (0312 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A review board set up after the deadly bombings of two U.S. embassies in East Africa last August has concluded the United States didn't do enough to protect its diplomatic compounds from terrorist attacks, CNN has learned.

A final report from the board, expected to be released as early as Friday, will recommend closing some U.S. embassies in Africa and other regions as a security measure, according to Clinton administration sources.

The review board, headed by retired Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman William Crowe, concluded that Congress and successive White House administrations neglected to spend the money necessary to make U.S. diplomatic outposts around the world less vulnerable, sources tell CNN.

The report blames the State Department and other government agencies for putting a low priority on security. It also concludes that many U.S. embassies are too close to public streets, making them easier targets for terrorists.

"We believe there was a collective failure by several administrations and Congress over the past decade to invest adequate efforts and resources to reduce the vulnerability of U.S. diplomatic missions around the world to terrorist attacks," says a summary.

A source close to the board's investigation tells CNN that the board will recommend replacing embassies in some African nations and other countries with regional embassies that would serve several countries.

The review board was particularly critical of the security defects in East Africa given that another government commission -- formed 14 years ago after a deadly blast at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut killed hundreds of Marines -- outlined many of the same problems.

On August 7, 1998, nearly simultaneous blasts outside embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, killed 224 people, including 12 Americans.

State Department Correspondent Andrea Koppel contributed to this report.