07 August 1998
(NSC's Berger wakened President Clinton with the news) (900) By Wendy S. Ross and Jane A. Morse USIA White House and Diplomatic Correspondents Washington -- President Clinton has ordered that US flags be flown at half staff at all US government buildings at home and around the world to remember those killed in explosions August 7 near the US Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania. In a statement in the Rose Garden mid-morning, Clinton said "these acts of terrorist violence are as abhorrent as they are inhuman. We will use all the means at our disposal to bring those responsible to justice no matter what, or how long, it takes." "To the families and loved ones of the American and African victims of these cowardly attacks, you are in our thoughts and prayers," he said. Bombs exploded "within minutes of each other" at 10:45 a.m. local time, 3:45 a.m. Washington time, August 7 adjacent to US embassies in Nairobi and Dar-es-Salaam, White House Deputy Press Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Colonel Philip J. Crowley had told reporters at the White House earlier August 7. The explosions caused "extensive damage both to the embassies and to adjacent buildings," Crowley said at the early morning gaggle with the White House Press Corps. "We believe that Americans have been killed in Nairobi," he said, but "we are not aware that any Americans have been killed in Dar-es- Salaam." A State Department official told reporters on background mid-morning that the American death count at the US Embassy in Nairobi stands at seven: Three official American embassy employees and one American dependent are confirmed dead; two official American employees are "possibly dead" and one "presumed" dead. The State Department official said there are no Americans reported dead at the US Embassy in Dar-es-Salaam, although two Foreign Service Nationals were killed along with three guards. "We believe there are extensive injuries and deaths, particularly in Nairobi among the local population," Crowley said. But he cautioned the press that at this point "details are very sketchy" and said "numbers will fluctuate during the course of the day." Clinton was informed by phone by the National Security Advisor Sandy Berger at roughly 5:30 a.m. Washington time this morning, Crowley said. The President was "deeply troubled by the news and asked Sandy several questions about the details that we knew at that time. The National Security Advisor is updating the President as we speak," Crowley said. The State Department is coordinating the inter-agency response to the situation in Africa, the White House spokesman said. "We are dispatching military aircraft to Africa carrying medical supplies, blood, and they will be in a position to medivac injured Americans when they are in Africa. And an inter-agency response team will be dispatched from multiple locations later on today to provide additional security, medical and investigative personnel to the scene, he said. "These bombings will be thoroughly investigated and information about whether or not there were warnings will be part of that investigation," he said. "In light of these explosions we are taking appropriate security precautions around the world." Normal security procedures were being followed at the time of the bombings, the State Department official said. Asked who might be responsible for the bombings, Crowley would say only that "we are treating this as a terrorist attack." He said the US government is "not aware of any claims of responsibility" for the attacks. The Ambassador in Tanzania is not there at the present time, he is on vacation. The senior diplomat is the charge, John Lange, who is coordinating efforts there, he said. The Ambassador in Nairobi, Prudence Bushnell, "who is a very well seasoned crisis manager at the State Department, she, I believe did sustain some injuries but is still on duty and is still negotiating the response to the efforts on the scene," Crowley said. Berger has no travel plans overseas, he said. The US government, Crowley added, is working closely with officials in both Nairobi and Dar-es-Salaam. In Kenya, he said, "we are gratified that the British government has made resources on the ground there in Nairobi available to our personnel." At the Pentagon, spokeswoman Col. Nancy Burt said the Air Force has requested that a C-141 transport leave Ramstein Air Base in Germany for Nairobi. It will take an Air Force surgical team, medical supplies and a small security detail to aid in the recovery from the blast. Colonel Burt said An Air Force C-9 medical transport will be sent separately to Tanzania, but it has not yet been determined where it will originate from. At the airport in Rome, Secretary of State Albright condemned the bombings as "dastardly and cowardly acts of apparent terrorism" and vowed that the United States "will spare no effort and use all means at our disposal to track down and punish the perpetrators of these outrageous acts." Albright was in Rome to attend the wedding of her spokesman, James Rubin. The bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, however, cut short her stay and she flew back to Washington immediately after making her public statement to the press. A State Department official said there had been no advance threats and normal security precautions had been followed.