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U.S. forces in Bahrain on alert to 'possible threat'
April 7, 1997
Web posted at: 8:22 p.m. EDT (0022 GMT)WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. forces and embassy personnel in Bahrain were on a heightened state of alert Monday following reported new terrorist threats in the Persian Gulf state.
The nature of the suspected threats was not disclosed, but U.S. military personnel and embassy staff have been directed to stay away from public areas such as restaurants and parks, a military spokesman told CNN.
"The U.S. Embassy and U.S. military continue to review information of a possible terrorist threat to the U.S. military in the region, including Bahrain," the spokesman said. "As such, U.S. Naval forces ashore (in Bahrain) have enhanced their security posture."
About 8,800 U.S. Navy personnel are assigned to the area, with at least several hundred in Bahrain at any given time. The Navy's 5th Fleet Headquarters is Manama, the capital of Bahrain.
Forces there have maintained a high state of alert since two bombings targeted U.S. forces in neighboring Saudi Arabia. In November 1995, a bomb in the Saudi capital of Riyadh killed five U.S. military members, and in June 1996, a truck bombing near Dhahran killed 19 U.S. airmen.
The majority of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia relocated to a remote desert air base for security reasons after the Dhahran bombing.
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- Explosions damage businesses in Bahrain - May 5, 1996
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