On October 12, 2000, an American naval vessel, the U.S.S. Cole , was bombed while it was berthed in Aden Harbor in Yemen in the Middle East. The bombing, which killed 17 American sailors, was planned and executed by Al-Qaeda. Relatives of those 17 sailors brought a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against the foreign state of the Republic of Sudan, alleging that Sudan was responsible for the bombing because that government supported al-Qaeda in general and the terrorists who carried off this assault in particular. The government of the Republic of Sudan moved to dismiss the case, arguing that the court lacked subject matter jurisdiction.

The argument was based on the fact that the case involved citizens of states of the United States in an attempt to sue a foreign government, something not permitted under federal law. Is the government of Sudan correct in this case? Explain. Rux v. Republic of Sudan, 461 F.3d. 461 (4 th Cir. 2006).