Corpus Christi Caller Times Caller.com - 2 detained in Cole bombing linked to hotel attack

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Wednesday, November 1, 2000

2 detained in Cole bombing linked to hotel attack
4 others sought for questioning; Navy ships are avoiding the Suez Canal out of terrorism concerns
By Donna Abu-Nasr
Associated Press
LAHEJ, Yemen - Two Yemenis detained in the bombing of the USS Cole are believed to have taken part in attacks on Yemeni hotels in 1993 blamed on Islamic militants, sources close to the investigation said Tuesday.
   The Yemenis were among nine men detained last week for questioning in connection with the Oct. 12 attack on the U.S. destroyer in Aden harbor that killed 17 U.S. sailors and injured 39 others.
   The sources said the two were believed to have taken part in bombing attacks in December 1993 on Aden's two main hotels that killed an Austrian and a local janitor.
   At that time, officials and diplomats said Muslim fundamentalists angered by Yemen's support for the U.S.-led relief operation in Somalia were behind the attacks. About 100 U.S. servicemen were in Aden then as part of the relief operation.
   The investigation, the sources said, was increasingly centering on Lahej, an area 20 miles north of Aden and a stronghold of veterans of the war in Afganistan against the Soviets. It said all the nine detained men were from Lahej.
   The sources - who spoke on condition they not be named - also said the investigation is focusing on four men believed to be the main plotters in the attack on the Cole. None of the four has been seen since the blast. Paperwork relating to four identification cards issued between 1996 and 1997 has disappeared from government files, the sources said.
   At least one of the cards is fake and was issued in Lahej. The card was used to register at least three houses and locations the bombers are believed to have used as well as a small boat used in the attack.
   Meanwhile, the Cole has been loaded onto a heavy-lift ship, the Blue Marlin, which will carry the warship back to the United States, Frederik Steenbuch, manager of Offshore Heavy Transport in Oslo, Norway, said Tuesday. The Blue Marlin will travel around the southern tip of Africa to avoid the Suez Canal, U.S. defense officials said.
   In Washington, U.S. defense officials said Navy ships have stopped using the Suez Canal out of concern for terrorist threats. U.S. officials said troops in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have been placed on the highest state of alert, following indications of terrorist threats.

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