    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: WILLIAM J. CLINTON (1999, Book II)]
    [July 6, 1999]
    [Page 1136]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1136]]

    Statement on the National Emergency With Respect to the Taliban
    July 6, 1999

        I have signed an Executive order imposing financial and other
    commercial sanctions on the Afghan Taliban for its support of Usama bin
    Ladin and his terrorist network. The Taliban
    has allowed the territory under its control to be used as a safe haven
    and base of operations for Usama bin Ladin and the al-Qaida
    organization, who were responsible for the bombings of our Embassies in
    Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, last year, murdering 12
    Americans, nearly 300 Kenyans and Tanzanians, and wounding another
    5,000. To this day, bin Ladin and his network continue to plan new
    attacks against Americans, without regard for the innocence of their
    intended victims or for those non-Americans who might get in the way of
    his attack. The United States has tried repeatedly, directly and working
    with other governments, to persuade the Taliban to expel bin Ladin to
    the United States for trial or, if that is not possible, to a third
    country where he will face justice for his crimes, and to end the safe
    haven it gives to bin Ladin's network, which lives and trains in
    Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. These efforts have failed. The Executive
    order I have signed will deepen the international isolation of the
    Taliban, limit its ability to support terrorist networks, and
    demonstrate the need to conform to accepted norms of international
    behavior. The order does not affect humanitarian aid, food, and medical
    supplies for civilian use. It is not aimed at the people of Afghanistan
    but at the Taliban. Those who nurture terrorism must understand that we
    will not stand by while those whom they protect target Americans.

    Note: The Executive order of July 4 is listed in Appendix D at the end
    of this volume.