September 7, 2000 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H7351 During research for keeps ingredients in drinks from settling at history of the United States of Amer- Reeve has eaten ice cream sorbet with the bottom of a can, and forms a film around ica. It is estimated that more than , spent hours sitting in a sweets and medical pills, keeping them fresh. 6,000 people lost their lives in a matter stairwell on a London housing estate waiting It is a crucial ingredient in dozens of prod- of a few hours. Prior to the storm, Gal- for a former Lebanese smuggler, met Amer- ucts Western consumers use every day, and ican intelligence officials in a suburban within two years in arriving in Sudan, bin veston was a thriving port community burger bar and a Chinese restaurant, and Laden is believed to have secured an effec- of 37,000 people and was dubbed the been followed by agents from two different tive monopoly over the entire Sudanese out- Wall Street of the West. countries during meetings with a renegade put. Stories from the survivors of the spy. Even now the State Department in Wash- storm are filled with displays of cour- Ramzi Yousef, and the ington and analysts at the CIA remain un- age and self-sacrifice in the face of ‘‘Afghan Arabs’’ have ‘‘dominated inter- sure whether bin Laden is still profiting grave danger. One of the most famous national as it relates to the United from his investment. Thirty per cent of the is the one about the nuns who ran the States and Europe [in the 1990s]. At the shares in Gum Arabic Company Limited are international level the only terrorist appa- held by the Sudanese government, who may orphanage. As the winds and storm ratus that the United States has had to deal or may not be siphoning profits into bin tides got higher, it became obvious with over the past several years has been Laden accounts. The other 70 per cent is held that the last building would collapse. Osama bin Laden and before that Ramzi by individual shareholders and banks, any or The nuns tied the children to them- Yousef.’’ Oliver ‘‘Buck’’ Revell, former Dep- all of whom may be acting as fronts for bin selves with clothesline, eight or nine uty Director of the FBI. Laden. It is still possible that every time kids to each nun, in a sad, brave effort ‘‘Ramzi Yousef is an evil genius.’’ Senior someone buys an American soft drink they to try to save them. Three little boys Pakistani intelligence officer. are helping to fill Osama bin Laden’s coffers. survived the night by camping in a ‘‘Yousef was a pretty unique person. He liked the bar scene, he liked women, he liked August 11, 2000. tree. All the rest died. Galveston never lost that resilient moving around. Yousef was very good. He Hon. FRANK R. WOLF, was well trained, very clever. He’ll certainly U.S. House of Representatives, spirit and went on to build a 17-foot be ranked right up there with the all-timers. Washington, DC. seawall that staved off other fierce Even to this day, he is a very shadowy figure DEAR CONGRESSMAN WOLF: Thank you for hurricanes. The city also pumped in that we really don’t know that much about, your recent letter expressing your concern millions of tons of sand from the Gulf even after all that’s been done and all that’s about Section 1439 of H.R. 4868. The humani- of Mexico in order to raise the level of been investigated on him.’’ Neil Herman, the tarian situation in Sudan is a tragic one, and the city and its buildings to a safer FBI Supervisory Special Agent who led the every effort should be made to bring an end height. Joint Terrorist Task Force during to the unnecessary suffering of the Sudanese This weekend, Galveston will be the hunt for Yousef. people. ‘‘Yes, I am a terrorist, and I’m proud of The Administration agrees with you that holding a ceremony commemorating it.’’ Ramzi Yousef. the sanctions on the government of Sudan’s the hurricane, honoring the memories ‘‘In the past, we were fighting terrorists exportation of gum arabic should not be lift- of those who died, launching education with an organisational structure and some ed. The government of Sudan has not made efforts, and celebrating the rebirth of attainable goal like land or the release of po- progress in rectifying the human rights Galveston after the storm. My resolu- litical prisoners. But Ramzi Yousef is the abuses for which those sanctions were im- tion extends those efforts to our Na- new breed, who are more difficult and haz- posed, and we should not consider perma- tion’s Capital and to all the people of ardous. They want nothing less than the nently lifting sanctions until satisfactory overthrow of the West, and since that’s not progress has been made. the United States. We should honor going to happen, they just want to punish— The crisis in the Sudan is an important those who died in the storm and use the more casualties the better.’’ Oliver issue to me. I recently shared my concerns the anniversary to continue improving ‘‘Buck’’ Revell, former Deputy Director of with Secretary General Annan, and re- hurricane forecasting and to make life the FBI. quested that he and his staff continue to safer and more secure along our coasts. ‘‘He’s a cold-blooded terrorist. He doesn’t work to ensure that humanitarian organiza- My resolution recognizes the histor- care who he kills. He may be the most dan- tions like Operation Lifeline Sudan are able ical significance of the 100th anniver- gerous man in the world.’’ Superintendent to effectively carry out their desperately- sary of the hurricane, it remembers the Samuel Pagdilao of the National needed work. victims, and it urges the President to Defense Police describing Yousef. I share your hope for and commitment to ‘‘One man said to me ‘remember there will an end to this humanitarian disaster. issue a proclamation in memory of the only be those who believe and those who will Sincerely, thousands of Galvestonians who lost die. There will only be the dead and the be- RICHARD C. HOLBROOKE. their lives and the survivors who re- lievers’.’’ Benazir Bhutto, former Prime Min- f built the city. ister of . f ‘‘If Russia can be destroyed, the United 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF States can also be beheaded.’’ Osama bin GALVESTON HURRICANE b 1745 Laden. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a FEDERAL BUDGET ‘‘In my personal view [Osama bin Laden’ is very much interested in obtaining weapons previous order of the House, the gen- The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. of mass destruction and he has the money to tleman from Texas (Mr. LAMPSON) is LAHOOD). Under the Speaker’s an- pay for them. It’s certainly a credible recognized for 5 minutes. nounced policy of January 6, 1999, the threat.’’ Peter Probst, Pentagon terrorism Mr. LAMPSON. Mr. Speaker, today I gentleman from Texas (Mr. STENHOLM) expert. introduced a concurrent resolution in is recognized for 60 minutes as the des- ‘‘We don’t consider it a crime if we tried to memory of the 100th anniversary of the ignee of the minority leader. have nuclear, chemical, biological weapons. devastating hurricane which struck Mr. STENHOLM. Mr. Speaker, I want If I have indeed acquired these weapons, then Galveston, Texas, on September 8, 1900. I thank God for enabling me to do so.’’ to thank those making this period of Osama bin Laden. The residents of Galveston showed time available today to further the dis- ‘‘Terrorism is changing. We expect biologi- great courage and sacrifice during that cussion of the bill that was vetoed and cal attacks in the future.’’ Marvin Cetron, terrible storm, and I thought it was then sustained earlier today. author of the Pentagon’s secret Terror 2000 important for Congress to recognize I would gather that anyone listening investigation. that that same spirit is still present in to the debate today was rather con- the people who live there today; and I fused about what was in the bills or ‘‘THE NEW JACKALS’’ BY SIMON REEVE wanted to join them as they honor the what was not in the bills or what the AL QAEDA memories of those who lost their lives effect would be. But to do this, to set Perhaps most crucially, bin Laden cannily on that historic day 100 years ago. the stage for this, I think it is impor- invested in Gum Arabic Company Limited, a In an era without radar, satellites or tant for us to go back and to review the Khartoum-based firm which has a virtual modern radio, the island of Galveston budget debates earlier this year. monopoly over most of Sudan’s exports of was quickly overtaken by vast waves, And I want to speak on behalf again gum Arabic, which in turn comprises around 80 per cent of the world’s supply. Gum Arabic surging flood waters and powerful of the Blue Dog budget, the Blue Dog comes from the sap of the Sudanese acacia winds of more than 120 miles per hour. Coalition, that proposed a budget that tree. A colourless, tasteless gum, it makes The hurricane that struck Galveston is got 171 votes, a majority of the Demo- newspaper ink stick to printing presses, the deadliest natural disaster in the crats, and 33 Republicans, joined with

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