For at least two decades, the United States has been actively involved in military operations beyond its territory. Not surprisingly, it exposed its military and navy professionals to increased risks of physical violence abroad. Thousands of American haven fallen victim to the terrorist attacks against the United States Army in Iraq, Afghanistan, other countries, and right here on our own soil. The United States continues its counterinsurgency operations worldwide. 2000 marked a very tragic even in the pages of the history of the United States’ foreign military operations. On October 12, the USS Cole was hit as a result of a suicide bombing attack (CNN, 2015). Looking back into the past, one thing is clear: the United States failed to anticipate…show more content… A group of terrorists developed a comprehensive strategy for attacking the USS Cole. A suicide boat loaded with six hundred pounds of C4 and piloted by two suicide bombers approached the USS Cole while it was docked in Aden for refueling (Cain, 2014). The explosion occurred when the loaded boat "approached the port side of the guided missile destroyer" (Cain, 2014). It left a 40-foot wide hole above the waterline (Cain, 2014). At that time, the crew was getting ready for lunch (Cain, 2014). Seventeen sailors were killed at instantly, thirty nine others were injured (Cain, 2014). The Rules of Engagement in place at the time were not such that would have provided any defense against a rapidly approaching suicide boat, they coud only fire if fired upon (Cain,…show more content… At that time, the USS Cole, as well as other naval ships, lacked any comprehensive information regarding the real risks of terrorism in Yemen (HASC, 2001). Without such information, United States military professionals simply could not adequately estimate the risks of terrorism. Coupled with the lack of information was a common perception that no one would be willing to carry out a terrorist attack against a United States warship (HASC, 2001). The United States Navy relied on the premise that Yemen complied with its peacetime rules (HASC, 2001). Unfortunately, the extent to which Yemen was willing to follow the rules of the peacetime game was extremely overestimated. Finally, the anti-terrorism protection program implemented by the United States military did not cover waterborne targets (HASC, 2001). Thus, most ships in the United States Navy were completely unprotected from terrorism risks. In light of those deficiencies, the suicide bombers faced little operational hardships organizing an attack against the USS Cole. That attack further revealed the inconsistency of the responsibility and accountability lines in the United States
