U.S. still can't link Bin Laden to USS Cole attack

WASHINGTON — The United States has refused to blame Saudi billionaire fugitive Osama Bin Laden for the Oct. 12 attack on the USS Cole in Aden.

The refusal comes amid assertions by Yemeni officials that Bin Laden has been identified as the mastermind of the bombing, which killed 17 U.S. sailors. Defense Secretary William Cohen said U.S. investigators have still not made that determination.

"That has not been established yet," Cohen said. "But if it is, in fact, Bin Laden, we certainly would hold him accountable and have a full range of options available. I wouldn't specify military as being the first or the only. There are other options available as well, and in addition to criminal prosecution, diplomatic action, economic measures that can be taken as well as potentially military. But we first have to make sure that we have the right person or persons and organizations responsible for the attack before any action is taken."

Bin Laden is said to be hiding in Afghanistan. On Wednesday, the Doha-based Al Jazeera television showed Bin Laden at the son of his wedding in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar. The wedding took place the previous day.

Cohen addressed the issue on Tuesday as the Pentagon released a report that recommended anti-terrorism training for U.S. troops abroad. A Pentagon commission also called for improved U.S. intelligence-gathering and insistence on tight protection from other nations for U.S. forces. This includes investing more resources into signal and human intelligence and learning foreign languages.

"Transiting units need to be trained better to demand better intelligence from the system," [Ret.] Navy Admiral Harold Gehman, one of the two heads of the commission, said. "We found that the department and the intelligence community have shifted resources for analysis and collection away from Cold War missions and toward the anti-terrorist mission, but only at the margins."

Officials said the United States is reviewing its agreements with allies to ensure that adequate protection is provided for American forces. They said the Pentagon might cancel the presence of U.S. troops in those countries that don't provide sufficient protection.

In Sanaa, Yemeni security sources said five additional suspects have been arrested in connection with the Cole bombing.