Memorial to sailors killed on USS Cole dedicated

NORFOLK, Va. -- With a promise never to forget, the Navy dedicated a monument Friday to the 17 sailors killed in the bombing of the USS Cole exactly one year ago.

"Today, we honor 17 American heroes at this beautiful site that will forever carry their names," Rear Adm. John B. Foley III, commander of the Atlantic Fleet's surface forces, told about 1,000 Cole crew members and relatives who gathered at the Norfolk Naval Station.

The monument, a 10-foot monolith encircled by 17 granite slabs, was placed on a site overlooking Willoughby Bay -- where ships leaving and returning from sea pass by.

U.S. officials believe Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network is behind both the bombing of the Norfolk-based destroyer in Yemen on Oct. 12, 2000, and the Sept. 11 attacks in New York and the Pentagon.

Foley said that terrorism is "a word that is now part of our daily vocabulary."

"These terrorist attacks will never be forgotten, but nor will they deter us," he said.

The ceremony at the Norfolk Naval Station included a 21-gun salute and a final roll call for the victims.

A bell rang after the name, age and hometown of each sailor was read.