May 13, 1990: New People's Army assassins fatally shot two
U.S. airmen near Clark Air Base in the Philippines. The
killings came on the eve of the U.S.-Philippine exploratory
talks on the future of U.S. military bases in the Philippines.
Most likely, the attack was perpetrated to protest
the U.S. presence in the Philippines.
June 13, 1990: An American Peace Corps worker was kidnapped
from his home in the Philippines. The New People's
Army was responsible. The American was released unharmed on
August 2 even though no ransom was paid. Coming around the
time of U.S.-Philippine exploratory talks on the future of
military bases in the Philippines and exactly a month after
the killing of two U.S. airmen at Clark Air Base, the attack
was most likely a protest against the U.S. presence in the
Philippines.
January 2, 1991: A U.S. military helicopter was shot down
by the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front militants
(Marxist guerrillas) in San Miguel, El Salvador. The two
crewmen were then killed. The crewmen were most likely
targets because the United States provided military aid and
advisers to the government of El Salvador.
June 10, 1992: A U.S. Army vehicle traveling between
Panama City and Colón, Panama, was raked with gunfire. The
driver was killed and a passenger and a nearby civilian
bystander were wounded. The incident was most likely related
to the U.S. military presence in Panama and U.S. control
of the Panama Canal Zone.
July 1, 1993: Terrorists fired two rockets at the U.S. Air
Force base at Yokota, Japan. The incident happened a few
days before President Clinton arrived at the base. The
incident most likely resulted from opposition to the U.S.
military presence in Japan.
· July 7, 1993: Six days later, terrorists fired four projectiles
at the headquarters of the U.S. Air Force in Japan
at Camp Zama, Japan. Again, the incident was most likely
related to opposition to the U.S. military presence in
Japan.
Shortly before Easter 1995: Authorities were tipped off by
Japanese police that members of the Aum Shinrikyo (Supreme
Truth) religious cult planned a nerve gas attack at Disneyland
in Anaheim, California. The group planned to attack
during a fireworks celebration when attendance at the park
would reach maximum capacity. U.S. authorities apprehended
members of the group at the Los Angeles airport before they
could launch the attack. The plan also included an attack
on petrochemical facilities in Los Angeles. Aum Shinrikyo
had earlier used sarin nerve gas to attack the Tokyo subway
(March 20, 1995). According to the group's belief system,
the last years of the millennium will give rise to an Armageddon
between Japan and the United States. Aum Shinrikyo
believed that attacking the Tokyo subway would hasten the
Armageddon. The group was hoping to kill tens of thousands
of people.
The cult chose the United States--a friendly nation--as
Japan's adversary rather than other regional nations that
are much more likely to be future rivals of Japan in East
Asia-—China, Russia, and North and South Korea. That indicates
how easily an interventionist superpower can be vilified
by conspiratorially minded groups, even in a friendly
nation.
The Aum Shinrikyo cult had assets of $1.2 billion and
the capability to produce sarin and VX gas, the agents that
cause anthrax and botulism, and radiological weapons. The
group is still active.
August 18, 1995: The Manuel Rodriguez Patriotic Front
claimed responsibility for a bomb explosion at an office
building that housed the American company Fluor Daniel in
Santiago, Chile. The group stated that the incident was
carried out in solidarity with Cuba and in opposition to the
American economic blockade of that island.
November 15, 1995: An explosive device was discovered on a
power line to a U.S. military complex in Sagmihara, Japan.
No group claimed responsibility. The incident was most
likely related to opposition to the U.S. military presence
in Japan.
February 15, 1996: Unidentified assailants fired a rocket
at the U.S. embassy compound in Athens, Greece, causing
minor damage to three diplomatic vehicles and surrounding
buildings. The State Department noted that the cir stances
of the attack suggested it was an attack by the group
November 17. November 17 attacks U.S. targets because of
"American imperialism-nationalism."
May 31, 1996: In Nicaragua a gang of disgruntled former
Contra guerrillas kidnapped an employee of the U.S. Agency
for International Development who was assisting in preparations
for the Nicaraguan elections. She was later released
unharmed.
April 3, 1998: The Greek November 17 movement claimed responsibility
for a recent rash of attacks against U.S.
targets. November 17's victims since 1975 include a CIA
station chief and three other Americans. The group issued a
statement saying the campaign was "aimed against American
imperialism-nationalism."
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