U.S. defense secretary heads to Mideast, Persian Gulf

William Cohen

Exact itinerary not released as security precaution

From CNN Military Affairs Correspondent Jamie McIntyre

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen departed Wednesday to visit U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf region and to consult with his counterparts and senior government officials in Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Israel.

Cohen's exact itinerary is not being released as a security precaution.

U.S. military forces in the region remain at the top two levels of alert for possible imminent terrorist attack.

MESSAGE BOARD Mideast peace

Last weekend, Kuwait announced that it had arrested several Kuwaitis suspected of plotting attacks against U.S. interests in the region.

Another suspect was detained in Qatar, and a large quantity of high explosives was also seized, according to Kuwaiti officials.

Pentagon sources said 133 kilograms (293 pounds) of C-4 plastic explosives were recovered. Officials said the C-4 was a mix that appeared to have come from three countries -- Britain, Portugal and Iraq.

U.S. officials said that would indicate the explosives were obtained on the black market, rather than being supplied by a single country.

Cohen plans to return to Washington on November 23.

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