Threatcon Delta Declared in Bahrain, Qatar

By Linda D. Kozaryn
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 25, 2000 -- U.S. Central Command officials
have declared Threat Condition Delta, the highest threat
level, in Bahrain and Qatar, Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm.
Craig Quigley said here Oct. 24.

The entire Central Command area of responsibility went to
Threat Condition Charlie immediately after the Oct. 12
attack on the USS Cole in Aden, Yemen. Based on the most
recent threat assessment, Quigley said, military leaders
raised the threat level in Bahrain, where about 1,100 U.S.
service members are stationed, and in Qatar, where fewer
than 50 U.S. service members tend pre-positioned equipment.

While the credibility of threat information provided by
intelligence sources was unknown, he said, "given the
circumstances, the recent attack on the Cole and the
generally higher level of threat throughout the region, we
thought it was simply the prudent thing to do to go to that
higher threat condition in those two specific areas."

"Vessels in the U.S. Fifth Fleet will remain at sea for the
foreseeable future," he said. The threat condition
throughout the rest of Central Command, including Saudi
Arabia, Kuwait and Turkey, remains at Threat Condition
Charlie. The last time CENTCOM went to Threat Condition
Delta, he noted, was following the 1998 U.S. embassy
bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, Africa.

Overall, Quigley said, the threat against U.S. interests
overseas has increased over the past 10 to 20 years. "We
are not universally welcomed in a lot of places overseas,
and forces there have shown their objections to U.S.
military presence in a variety of ways, unfortunately, some
of them very violent," he said.

The attack on the Cole has heightened awareness throughout
the armed forces, he said. "I would suggest that probably
every installation's security manager, commanding officer
(and) their security force is taking a good, hard look at
the procedures they have in place, and saying, 'Are we
still OK?' ... Is (there) something we should perhaps
change?'" Quigley said.

The military's four threat levels, Alpha, Bravo, Charlie
and Delta, each bear a set of increasingly restrictive
security precautions. Considerations include the movement
of people, visitor identification, vehicle checks, and the
offset of allowed parking next to facilities and buildings,
he said.

Threat Condition Delta is normally declared as a localized
warning when a terrorist attack has occurred or
intelligence indicates likely terrorist action against a
specific location. It requires commanders to implement
mandatory security measures tailored to the local scenario,
and it authorizes and encourages them to supplement the
mandatory measures as they see fit, based on their
knowledge of the local area, Quigley said.

The explosion aboard the Cole tore a 40-by-40 foot
waterline hole in the destroyer's portside hull amidships.
Seventeen sailors died in the explosion and more than 35
were injured. The ship is still in Aden, stable and
operating on her own power, Quigley noted.

Six other U.S. ships are nearby. The amphibious assault
ship USS Tarawa, the amphibious transport USS Duluth and
dock landing ship USS Anchorage are off the coast of Yemen
to provide additional berthing for the U.S. teams on the
scene. The frigate USS Hawes, combat support ship USS
Camden, destroyer USS Donald Cook and the ocean tug USS
Catawba are also in the area to provide in support.

The Catawba will tow the Cole to deep water for loading
aboard the Blue Marlin, a privately owned heavy-lift
salvage ship that will carry the damaged ship piggyback to
Norfolk, Va. Blue Marlin is due to arrive in Aden by about
Oct. 28.

The FBI investigation into the Cole attack is ongoing,
Quiqley said, and the Navy's Judge Advocate General Manual
Investigation will look at ship operations prior to the
attack to ensure all Navy procedures were followed.

A commission co-chaired by retired Army Gen. William Crouch
and Navy Adm. Harold Gehman, is gearing up to formulate
lessons learned to improve force protection. "Secretary
(William) Cohen did not set a deadline for the work, but
said he hoped that they would complete their review as soon
as possible," Quigley remarked.