NICOSIA — For the first time, Yemen has acknowledged that Saudi
billionaire fugitive Osama Bin Laden was involved in last month's bombing of
the USS Cole.
Yemeni authorities said the investigation of the Oct. 12 attack has
uncovered an indirect role by Bin Laden. They said that his aides could be
among those arrested in the aftermath of the bombing.
"Investigations into the USS Cole blast have revealed that the two men
who carried out the operation were Saudis of Yemeni origin," Yemeni Prime
Minister Abdul-Karim Iryani said. "Investigators also found that Osama Bin
Laden, who is also of Yemeni origin, was also involved in the attack on the
destroyer, even if indirectly. But the investigation has not found evidence
of this yet."
The assertion by the Yemeni premier is a departure from previous denials
by Sanaa that Bin Laden had any role in the attack. Bin Laden had used Yemen
as a haven before he moved to Afghanistan in 1998.
U.S. officials have suspected Bin Laden's involvement in the bombing.
But U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen said investigators have not
determined such ties.
The arrest of the two Saudis in connection with the USS Cole attack has
embarrassed Riyad. The Saudi Foreign Ministry said the assertion by Yemen
stemmed from enmity by government officials in Sanaa toward the kingdom.
