[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Pages 9941-9942]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               20TH ANNIVERSARY OF KHOBAR TOWERS BOMBING

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, June 25 marked 20 years since the 
devastating bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia. This 
horrifying and evil act killed 19 U.S. airmen and wounded nearly 500 
others, 372 of whom were American.
  The Khobar Towers were part of a housing complex where American, 
British, and French troops lived. The complex housed nearly 2,000 
military members. The night of the attack, U.S. Air Force SSGT Alfred 
Guerrero was on patrol and witnessed a gasoline truck drive up to the 
complex perimeter fence. The driver parked the gasoline truck and then 
immediately sprinted to the waiting vehicle where he met two other 
assailants who were acting as lookouts. The car then sped off. Sergeant 
Guerrero only had a few moments to respond, but tried bravely to begin 
an evacuation of the building. Tragically, there was not enough time 
before the truck bomb exploded.
  A member of my U.S. Capitol Police security detail, Special Agent 
Steve Sterling, was in an adjacent building when the attack took place. 
Steve, an airman first class at the time, was in the lobby of his 
building, making a call

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to the United States, when the blast erupted. He was thrown from his 
seat, but protected from further damage by the plywood boards 
surrounding the phone booth. Every other person in the lobby of his 
building was cut and bleeding from the debris and broken shards of 
glass. Later, Steve learned that four of his coworkers, whom he had 
just left only moments prior, were severely injured.
  After waiting a few seconds to get their bearings, Steve and the 
other servicemembers who suffered only minor injuries rushed to the 
blast site. They were shocked to see the entire face of building No. 
131 completely ripped off. Immediately, Steve and others started 
pulling people from the fallen rubble and setting up a triage. They 
worked through the night and into the early morning. They continued to 
sift through piles of debris for several days after.
  If it were not for the brave efforts of the servicemembers like Steve 
Sterling, perhaps other lives would have been lost. Today, as we honor 
those who were lost and injured in the attack, I honor all of the 
military personnel who responded. I thank them for their selflessness 
and courage.
  The explosion caused by the truck bomb was so great, it was heard 
from more than 20 miles away and left a hole in the ground nearly 35 
feet deep. It was discovered later that this bombing had been planned 
for 3 years. We also learned it was carried out by a militant group 
that sought solely to target members of our military. This disgusting 
act was one of the most brazen attacks on American military personnel. 
Sadly, it was not the last.
  It is important that we do not forget the victims whose lives were 
lost as a result because their bravery and service deserves our 
recognition. That is why I was pleased to support the resolution 
honoring these gallant men and women, ensuring they are never 
forgotten. There will never be a way to predict and prevent all such 
acts of violence, but we can take comfort in knowing that we have the 
best and most valiant individuals standing on the frontline.

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