In anticipation of the one-year anniversary of the bombings of U.S. embassies in Africa, the House Wednesday voted to spend $1.4 billion on measures that will increase security at American diplomatic posts around the globe.
The House bill,H.R. 2415, provides funding for rebuilding or remodeling U.S. embassies, more than half of which are considered to have poor security. Many embassies are considered to be too close to streets, placing them at risk for car bombs.
According to the State Department, terrorist threats have increased as Aug. 7, the anniversary of last summer's bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, approaches. The explosions killed 224 people, including 12 Americans.
"Nobody needs another wake-up call like the embassy bombings in Africa ... to realize that it's essential to protect American citizens serving U.S. interests abroad," said Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., chairman of the House International Relations Subcommittee on International Operations.
The Senate version of the bill asked for $300 million next year for embassy security, the same request made by the Clinton administration. But the House version nearly quadrupled that figure, with more than half of the money earmarked for embassy remodeling and the rest for State Department programs and other international aid.
The security funding was included in the broader $2.4 billion foreign operations bill, which the House renamed "The American Embassy Security Act." Former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. William J. Crowe, who headed a security review board established in the wake of the embassy bombings, endorsed the bill.
H.R. 2415 also gives greater flexibility to federal law enforcement officials in responding to international crises. In the Africa bombings, it took the FBI more than 13 hours to arrange for aircraft to fly to the bomb sites. The new bill gives the FBI immediate leasing authority in such crises.