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U.S. to 'stand tall' in the face of terrorism
Bombings won't change foreign policy, State Department says
August 11, 1998Web posted at: 6:50 p.m. EDT (2250 GMT)
In this story:
- Bodies of 10 Americans home Thursday
- Security camera didn't record bombing
- Related sites and stories
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States has no intention of relinquishing its "robust presence in global affairs" in the aftermath of a pair of deadly bombings at U.S. embassies in two African capitals, the State Department said Tuesday.
State Department spokesman James Foley said the United States would "stand tall" against terrorism.
"Security is No. 1," Foley said. "But our foreign policy is not going to change. Our robust presence in global affairs is not going to change."
But, said Assistant Secretary for Administration Patrick Kennedy, the chiefs of each U.S. mission abroad have the discretion to close the embassy for security reasons, and about a half-dozen have done so for short periods of time.
"We are not shutting embassies down in a permanent sense," he said. "We are not leaving. We are, in effect, taking a brief time-out to make security adjustments that are necessary to be responsive to a threat."
Bodies of 10 Americans home Thursday
The death toll for Friday's bombings has risen over 200 -- at least 220 in Nairobi, Kenya, and 10 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Twelve of the dead, all in Kenya, were Americans.
Ten of the American dead will be escorted back to the U.S. Thursday morning by Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. One of Americans married a Kenyan and will be buried in her husband's homeland. Another American will be returned to U.S. soil earlier.
The White House said that President Clinton, Albright and first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton will attend an 11 a.m. EDT ceremony at Andrews Air Force Base.
Nearly 5,000 people were injured in the two bombings, and the search for more victims or survivors continues.
Both Clinton and Albright touted the cooperative efforts between the United States, Kenya and Tanzania following the attacks.
"I have been heartened by the close cooperation we have had with authorities in Kenya and Tanzania from the moment the tragedies occurred," Albright said Tuesday at a gathering of African diplomatic personnel at the State Department.
Clinton, speaking at an environmental event near San Francisco, added that officials in the African countries "are working very closely with us in our attempts to find those who are responsible."
The FBI has sent another contingent of agents to East Africa, bringing the total to over 175, divided equally between Nairobi and Dar es Salaam. The agents, the FBI said, were working in areas free of potential survivors and victims to collect evidence.
Clinton, acting in accordance with the 1973 War Powers Resolution, notified Congress that he has deployed a military joint task force to east Africa to coordinate medical and disaster response. He also said he has sent security teams of 50 to 100 persons each to Nairobi and Dar es Salaam.
Security camera didn't record bombing
In Tanzania, officials have rounded up 14 non-nationals, mostly Iraqis and Sudanese, saying they were unable to adequately explain their presence in the country.
A U.S. diplomatic security officials also said Tuesday that the security camera atop the Tanzanian embassy building did not record the events just prior to the explosion because it was not connected to a video recorder. But as a result of Friday's bombings, the official said, the U.S. government has begun to install recording devices in embassies.
CNN's Terry Frieden, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
