Foreign Service Victims of Terrorism Act of 2007
I rushed from my last appointment to be here because this is a day that we have waited for far too long. And I certainly appreciate all of the work that you have done, and certainly the work of Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., and the work of Members on both sides of the aisle. And Congressman Blunt is correct; we did coauthor this legislation I think some 6 years ago, but we have only been able to stick with this legislation because of one person, in my estimation, and that is Edith Bartley. She has walked these halls. She has lobbied. She has educated us. She has always been pleasant. She has been patient and cooperative. You couldn't have a better daughter. You couldn't have a better child. You couldn't have a better family member not only looking out for the family, but for all of the families who have not yet been treated fairly and compensated for what happened to them.
Mr. Speaker, as it was said, 9 years ago, on August 7, 1998, terrorists affiliated with al Qaeda bombed United States Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. These terrorist attacks were one of the first warnings of the threat posed by al Qaeda, the international terrorist organization that hijacked American airplanes and attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on 9/11 6 years ago.
The embassy bombings in Nairobi killed over 200 United States Embassy employees, 12 of whom were United States citizens, and injured thousands more. The embassy bombing in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania killed 11 employees and injured over 80 people. The terrorist attacks of 9/11 killed nearly 3,000 innocent people.
The United States Government provided compensation to the families of the victims of the 9/11 attacks. It is, therefore, entirely appropriate that the United States be consistent and provide compensation to the families of the victims of the embassy bombings in East Africa 3 years earlier.
So, I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill. I offer my apology and the apology of many others because it has taken so long. My sympathies to the families of the victims of those embassy bombings, as well as all of the victims of al Qaeda's acts of terror. Let us move forward so that we can finally do the right thing.
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