U.S. Supreme Court Rules Against USS Cole Victims In Sudan Bombing Lawsuit

USS Cole

CNN: Supreme Court rules against USS Cole victims in Sudan lawsuit

The Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled against victims and families of the October 2000 attack on the USS Cole in their lawsuit against Sudan.
The court, 8-1, said the victims did not properly serve notice of their lawsuit to the government of Sudan.

The decision clears the way for lower courts to throw out the more than $314 million default judgment that was awarded to the families.

The case arose from the bombing of the USS Cole, in which 17 US Navy sailors were killed and 42 were wounded when a boat pulled up alongside the USS Cole and exploded while docked at the port of Aden, Yemen.

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WNU Editor: The lawsuit was thrown over a technically. But the families can still sue by pursuing a different procedure.

More News On the U.S. Supreme Court Ruling Against USS Cole Victims In Sudan Bombing Lawsuit

U.S. top court backs Sudan over American sailors in USS Cole bombing case -- Reuters
Supreme Court tosses $315 million award in USS Cole lawsuit -- AP
Supreme Court rules against USS Cole victims, backs Sudan in bombing lawsuit -- The Hill

President Trump: USS Cole Bomber Died In Yemen Air Strike By U.S. Forces

Our GREAT MILITARY has delivered justice for the heroes lost and wounded in the cowardly attack on the USS Cole. We have just killed the leader of that attack, Jamal al-Badawi. Our work against al Qaeda continues. We will never stop in our fight against Radical Islamic Terrorism!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 6, 2019

The Guardian: Trump: US has killed al-Qaida militant tied to USS Cole bombing

* Seventeen sailors died in 2000 suicide attack in Yemen harbour
* Trump: ‘We have just killed the leader of that attack’

Donald Trump said on Sunday the US military has killed Jamal al-Badawi, an al-Qaida militant wanted in connection with the attack on the USS Cole.

Seventeen US sailors died and at least 40 people were wounded in the October 2000 attack, in which suicide bombers almost sank the guided missile destroyer while it lay in Aden harbour.

The attack on the USS Cole foreshadowed the attacks of 11 September 2001, in which 2,977 people were killed in New York City, Washington DC and Pennsylvania. Badawi was indicted in 2003 and charged with terrorism offenses including murder of US nationals and military personnel.

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More News On President Trump Confirming Reports That The Mastermind Behind The USS Cole Bombing Is Dead

USS Cole bomber died in Yemen air strike - Trump -- BBC
Trump confirms key plotter in USS Cole attack has been killed -- AFP
Trump: We Have Just Killed the Leader of the Deadly Attack on the USS Cole -- Haaretz/AP
U.S. says suspected USS Cole bombing planner killed in Yemen strike -- Reuters
Trump says military strike killed ‘leader’ of attack on USS Cole -- The Hill
Terrorist behind USS Cole attack in 2000 killed, says Donald Trump -- SKY News
Al-Qaeda operative linked to USS Cole attack killed: Trump -- Al Jazeera
Trump says military killed USS ‘Cole’ bombing ‘leader’ Jamal al-Badawi -- RT

Did A U.S. Airstrike In Yemen Kill The Mastermind Of The USS Cole Bombing?

USS Cole

FOX News: US airstrike in Yemen targeted Al Qaeda operative tied to USS Cole bombing; forces ‘assessing’ strike results, official says

U.S. forces carried out an airstrike in Yemen on New Year’s Day targeting an Al Qaeda operative suspected of being involved in the deadly 2000 attack on the USS Cole, a military official confirmed Friday.

The offensive maneuver was carried out in the Marib Governate, Yemen, and directed at Jamal al-Badawi, Capt. Bill Urban, U.S. Central Command spokesman, said in a statement.

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More News On A U.S. Airstrike In Yemen That Targeted The Mastermind Of The USS Cole Bombing

USS Cole plotter targeted in American airstrike -- Long War Journal
US says airstrike targeted militant tied to USS Cole bombing -- AP
Qaeda militant tied to deadly USS Cole bombing believed killed in airstrike -- NBC
US official: Airstrike kills terrorist behind USS Cole bombing -- CNN
U.S. targets suspected USS Cole bombing planner in Yemen: statement -- Reuters
Pentagon: Airstrike may have killed USS Cole bombing suspect -- UPI
Pentagon confirms terrorist involved in USS Cole attack was targeted in precision strike -- Washington Examiner
USS Cole bomber Jamal al-Badawi targeted in Yemen air strike -- BBC

Remembering The USS Cole Attack Ten Years Later

USS Cole Memorial: 10 Years Removed, Tears, Anger Still Flow -- Daily Press

NORFOLK —— Norm Larson, who survived the attack on the USS Cole 10 years ago, cried openly as his right arm snapped up in a salute. Moments later, he was smiling with friends.

It was that kind of day at Naval Station Norfolk.

Navy brass and sailors joined with the extended family of the USS Cole on Tuesday to mark the 10-year anniversary of the terrorist attack that killed 17 of the ship's crew as it was docked in Yemen.

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More News On The Tenth Anniversary Of The USS Cole Attack

Remembering The USS Cole, A Decade After The Naval Destroyer Was Attacked -- NPR
Sailors injured in USS Cole attack file lawsuit -- AP
2000 Cole attack never far from current crew's thoughts -- WVEC
Remember The Cole... -- Time Magazine
Closing the Case on the Cole -- New York Times opinion
On the Tenth Anniversary of the Cole Attack -- Thomas Joscelyn, Weekly Standard
Remember the Cole -- Jim Arkedis, L.A. Times

My Comment: 10 years .... my God .... how the time flies.

USS Cole Bomber's Trial Suspended For Now

USS Cole

Administration Halts Prosecution Of Alleged USS Cole Bomber -- Washington Post

The Obama administration has shelved the planned prosecution of Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, the alleged coordinator of the Oct. 2000 suicide attack on the USS Cole in Yemen, according to a court filing.

The decision at least temporarily scuttles what was supposed to be the signature trial of a major al-Qaeda figure under a reformed system of military commissions. And it comes practically on the eve of the 10th anniversary of the attack, which killed 17 sailors and wounded dozens when a boat packed with explosives ripped a hole in the side of the warship in the port of Aden.

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My Comment: One of the military officials involved in this case summed it up perfectly ....

"It's politics at this point," said one military official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss policy. He said he thinks the administration does not want to proceed against a high-value detainee without some prospect of civilian trials for other major figures at Guantanamo Bay.

Yup .... it all politics and how to make the administration look good. As for the families who are still waiting for justice ..... that is just an after thought.

How The USS Cole Was Recovered

Photo from Wikipedia

From Joe Schwartz.net:

Here are a few photos of the recovery of the USS Cole.
In the first photo, the ballast tanks of a transport ship are
flooded in order to allow it to sink beneath the disabled USS Cole.
The following photos show the USS Cole secured to the deck of the
transport ship following which the ballast tanks are emptied and the
transport slowly rises to the surface with the USS Cole on its deck.
The Cole was then transported from Aden to Pascagoula by the
Norwegian heavy transport ship M/V Blue Marlin.

To see the pictures .... go here.

Hat Tip: Extra Good Shit

Survivor Of Terrorist Attack On Destroyer Cole Dies At 31

USS Cole going into port for repairs

From Hampton Roads:

Even after losing his leg in the terrorist attack on the Norfolk-based destroyer Cole, Petty Officer 3rd Class Johann Gokool wasn't ready to give up the U.S. Navy. The way his former shipmates tell it, he wanted to return as soon as he had healed.

Instead, he was medically discharged from the Navy.

"At first he had a hard time with his injuries and with what happened, but he really picked up the pieces," said his former commanding officer, retired Cmdr. Kirk Lippold. "He had a very positive attitude. He was very strong."

Now friends and family are wondering what caused his sudden death last week at age 31.

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My Comment: Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.

Cole Attack Trial Will Test Tribunal System

The USS Cole

From The New York Times:

WASHINGTON — In April 2001, seven months after the Navy destroyer Cole was bombed in Yemen, Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri was staying at a Qaeda guesthouse in Afghanistan when he is alleged to have laid out how he had planned the whole thing.

One of those houseguests was later captured, and he told F.B.I. agents the story of those boasts and implied that he could be a star witness if Mr. Nashiri were tried for the murder of the 17 American sailors killed in the attack.

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My Comment: An interesting examination and analysis on why some Guantanamo detainees must be put in front of a military tribunal. I was surprise to find this article informative and an interesting read.

Former U.S.S. Cole Commander Criticizes White House Terrorism Policy And Detainee Releases

This file picture shows damage sustained on the port side of the guided missile destroyer USS Cole after a terrorist bomb exploded during a refueling operation in the port of Aden, Yemen, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2000. US Navy / AP file

From CNS News:

(CNSNews.com) - A terror suspect charged with the attempted murder of two U.S. soldiers -- before a judge ruled that his confession was coerced and inadmissible -- returned home to Afghanistan on Monday, the same day news broke of a policy change in interrogations.

After many Democrats and some Republican lawmakers called the Central Intelligence Agency’s interrogation techniques such as playing loud music and waterboarding “torture,” President Barack Obama reassigned interrogation responsibilities from the CIA to the National Security Council – which is run out of the White House, the Washington Post first reported.

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My Comment: The money quote is the following ....

“They are taking a page right out of the Lyndon Johnson Vietnam playbook, where it’s ‘let’s run things right out of the White House on a day-to-day basis, because we trust no one else in the government to be competent enough, talented enough or dedicated enough to be able to run a major war time effort,” former USS Cole Commander Kirk S. Lippold told CNSNews.com.

.... I could not have said it better.

Former USS Cole Commander Slams Obama On Guantanamo -- A Commentary

The USS Cole In the Middle East Shortly After The Bombing. The Main Blast Damage is in Center
(Photo from Lockportians At Large)

From McClatchy Newspapers:

The former commander of the USS Cole, the American war ship thatwas struck by a suicide boat in Yemeni waters more than eight years ago, on Thursday slammed President Barack Obama's orders to close the Guantanamo detention center and reassess the prisoners being held there.

''We shouldn't make policy decisions based on human rights and legal advocacy groups,'' retired U.S. Navy Cmdr. Kurt Lippold said in a telephone interview. "We should consider what is best for the American people, which is not to jeopardize those who are fighting the war on terror — or even more adversely impact the families who have already suffered loses as a result of the war."

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My Comment: The main stream media has so far been very quiet on the opposition of 9/11 and USS Cole families to President Obama's decisions in regards to Gitmo. But if one of these Al Qaeda suspects have their charges dropped ... expect an uproar that even they will not be able to contain.