U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Office for Victims of Crime

January 2002

Terrorism and International Victims Unit

With advancing technology, widespread use of the Internet, increased international tourism, and

overseas job opportunities, issues of violent crime and mass victimization have

become a major concern for agencies

serving victims in the United States

and abroad. In addition, the threat of

terrorism against Americans worldwide

has increased in recent years. New types

of weapons of mass destruction such as

chemical and biological agents pose significant challenges for those charged

with responding to victims of terrorist

attacks. In response to these emerging

issues, the Office for Victims of Crime

(OVC) created the Terrorism and

International Victims Unit (TIVU).

TIVU is responsible for developing

programs and initiatives to help victims

of terrorism, mass violence, and crimes

that have transnational dimensions,

such as trafficking of women and children and international child abduction.

TIVU coordinates OVC resources and

funding for victims of terrorism and

transnational crimes and administers a

new compensation program for victims

of international terrorism. TIVU also

seeks to further integrate crime victim

issues into international discussions.

Services to Victims

T

IVU provides the following services

to victims of crime: 

■ Provides information and benefits

to U.S. nationals and Federal

Government employees who are

victims of terrorism abroad. Victims

are given assistance in accessing

services, which may include traveling to trials and briefings, and obtaining information on the criminal

justice process.

■ Makes OVC resources available to

assist victims of terrorism, from the

crisis response stage to posttrial 

proceedings.

■ Serves as OVC’s liaison to the U.S.

Department of State and other federal agencies responsible for providing information and assistance to

U.S. citizens victimized abroad and

information regarding victim assistance resources to U.S. embassies

and consulates worldwide.

■ Serves as OVC’s liaison to foreign

embassies and consulates in the

United States to provide information on victim assistance resources

when foreign citizens are victimized

in the United States.

■ Helps fund efforts to recover children abducted and taken outside

U.S. borders.

Compensation and

Assistance Resources

T

IVU provides the following resources

to compensate and assist victims of

crime:

■ TIVU administers the International Terrorism Victims

Compensation Program, which 

allows U.S. nationals and Federal

Government employees who become victims of terrorism abroad to

apply to a single federal office to

obtain compensation. In fall 2000,

the 106th Congress passed the

Victims of Trafficking and Violence

Protection Act, which provides aid

for victims of terrorism and expands

OVC’s authority to respond to 

incidents of terrorism outside the

United States. In essence, the program seeks to address the unique

needs and circumstances of international terrorism victims.

■ More and more countries are developing programs that provide
compensation to victims of crime.

In response, TIVU is working with

the U.S. State Department to update and maintain an International

Crime Victim Compensation Program

Directory. The directory, which was

created to link victims abroad to

available resources, lists crime

victim compensation programs in

various foreign countries. Available

programs, eligibility requirements, 

application procedures, and compensable expenses covered by the

responding countries and the

United States are described in 

the directory. It is available from

the OVC Resource Center at

1–800–627–6872 (TTY 1–877–

712–9279) and via OVC’s Web site

at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/intdir.

■ TIVU administers the Antiterrorism and Emergency Assistance Program for Terrorism and

Mass Violence Victims. OVC developed guidelines to implement

the victim assistance and compensation provisions contained in the

Antiterrorism and Effective Death

Penalty Act of 1996, the Omnibus

Consolidated Appropriations Act

of 1997; the Victims of Trafficking

and Violence Protection Act of

2000; the USA Patriot Act of

2001; and the Commerce, Justice,

State Appropriations Act of 2002.

Under these guidelines, funding is

available to provide compensation

and assistance to victims of acts of

terrorism or mass violence within

the United States and assistance to

U.S. citizens and government employees who are victims of terrorism and mass violence abroad.

Funding may be used to provide a

wide range of services and respond

to the immediate and ongoing 

challenges of serving victims in the

aftermath of terrorism and mass 

violence.

Programs and

Initiatives

T

IVU is involved in a number of 

programs and initiatives with 

other federal agencies and nonprofit

organizations to enhance the assistance

provided to victims of terrorism, mass

violence, and international crimes. The

following is a list of TIVU’s programs

and initiatives:

■ Federal Interagency Protocols for

Responding to Victims of Terrorism. OVC, through TIVU, has

taken a leadership role in developing a federal protocol to ensure a

more effective and timely response

to victims of terrorism. Terrorism

crimes tend to involve large numbers of victims and may include employees of various federal agencies,

tourists, business representatives,

and foreign nationals. Coordination

within the Federal Government to

respond to victims’ needs and facilitate access to emergency relief and

ongoing services is crucial. Recent

international terrorist attacks

against the United States highlighted many of the unique and complex

problems in organizing an appropriate short- and long-term response to

victims of international terrorism

and victims of terrorism within U.S.

borders.

■ Training and Technical Assistance.

TIVU and the Emergency Services

and Disaster Relief Branch of the

Center for Mental Health Services

(CMHS) at the U.S. Department

of Health and Human Services are

developing training for mental

health services providers on assisting victims of terrorism and mass

violence. CMHS, which already

delivers training and technical assistance to mental health services

providers on working with natural

disaster victims, conducted an assessment of current research, literature, and practices regarding the

mental health needs of terrorism

victims. CMHS is incorporating

the information and programs that

address criminal mass victimization

into existing training programs and

will train victim assistance providers on the mental health needs

of terrorism victims.

TIVU and the Office for Domestic

Preparedness (ODP) are collaborating to provide training and technical assistance to enhance the

capacity of first responders to deal

effectively with victims of domestic

and international terrorism involving weapons of mass destruction.

The initiative will include the development of educational materials

and a national training and exercise program to help first responders support victims of terrorist

incidents.

■ Criminal Crisis Response Initiative

(CCRI). TIVU provides funding to

the Jefferson Institute for Justice

Studies (JIJS) in Washington, D.C.,

to develop CCRI, a communitybased assessment and planning

process to help states and local communities design and implement a

strategic plan for responding to victims of criminal mass violence. Thus

far, JIJS has identified communities

that have existing response plans,

developed a community action plan

and program implementation guide,

and started working with communities nationwide to help them develop crisis response plans.

■ Oklahoma City Bombing. OVC,

through TIVU, continues to support

the efforts of Oklahoma City as the

community recovers from the April

19, 1995, bombing of the Alfred P.

Murrah Federal Building, which

killed 168 people and injured more

than 850 others. Most recently,

TIVU coordinated with the Federal

Bureau of Prisons to provide support

to the victims during Timothy

McVeigh’s execution. As other 

2
issues arise, TIVU will coordinate

with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for

the Western District of Oklahoma

and various appropriate agencies.

■ Federal and Nongovernmental

Agency Coordination. TIVU

works closely with a number of

other federal agencies, including 

the Federal Bureau of Investigation

(FBI), U.S. Department of State,

U.S. Agency for International

Development, U.S. Attorneys’

Offices, U.S. Immigration and

Naturalization Service, Office for

Domestic Preparedness, and

National Transportation Safety

Board (NTSB), to enhance existing

services and develop initiatives to

help victims of terrorism. In addition, TIVU is developing working

relationships with the Federal

Emergency Management Agency

and the American Red Cross on issues surrounding victims of domestic and international terrorism.

■ International Parental Abductions.

The U.S. Departments of Justice

and State have a cooperative agreement with the National Center for

Missing and Exploited Children

(NCMEC) to track kidnaped children taken across international borders and to help their parents

obtain lawful custody under the

Hague Convention’s treaty on international child abductions. To 

assist in this effort, TIVU makes

funding available to NCMEC to

help parents with inadequate resources travel abroad to retrieve

their children and return to the

United States.

■ International Trafficking of

Women and Children. OVC is

working in a number of areas to address the needs of victims who are

trafficked across U.S. borders for

exploitative purposes. OVC staff

serve on several departmental task

forces that are working on issues related to the international trafficking of women and children.

■ United Nations Crime Commission and Other International

Bodies. TIVU staff participate 

in the annual United Nations

Commission on Crime Prevention

and Criminal Justice in Vienna,

Austria. The United States

cosponsored resolutions to foster

implementation of the 1985 United

Nations Declaration of Basic

Principles of Justice for Victims

of Crime and Abuse of Power. In

addition, OVC took the lead in coordinating the development of the

United Nations Handbook on Justice

for Victims and the accompanying

United Nations Guide for Policy

Makers on implementing the principles set forth in the declaration in

countries around the world.

■ Conference Activities. TIVU

sponsors and participates in numerous conferences to highlight the 

issues surrounding victims of terrorism and international crimes. Such

activities have included

❑ A symposium on Journalism in

the Face of Terrorism, which

sought to improve the accuracy

and clarity of information

transmitted to victims and the

public after a terrorist attack.

Symposium attendees included

leading journalists and government officials.

❑ A conference on International

Terrorism, Victims’ Rights,

and the Lockerbie Trial,

which assessed the international cooperation in prosecuting

terrorism in the Pan Am Flight

103 Lockerbie criminal trial

and in providing victims’ rights

and services.

International Visitors

T

IVU provides technical assistance

and briefings to visitors from around

the world who are interested in victim

assistance efforts in the United States.

OVC recently hosted internship programs for two attorneys, from Japan and

Israel, who were studying victims’ rights

and services in the United States. The

primary goal of these internships was to

allow the interns to identify promising

practices and model programs that

could be replicated in their countries.

OVC, through TIVU, will continue to

host internship programs and conduct

briefings for foreign visitors.

Terrorist Acts

OVC has supported victims and families of the following terrorist attacks:

■ Attack on America. In response

to the terrorist acts of September

11, 2001, TIVU has played a key

role in OVC’s response to victims

and their families in New York,

Virginia, and Pennsylvania. As of

the date of this publication, TIVU

has been involved in the creation

of the OVC Victim and Family

Assistance Telephone Center

which, among other things, houses

a toll-free number for victims to

call for various forms of assistance.

TIVU has also participated in the

development of a new DOJ/OVC

Web site for victims which provides

assistance and helpful information,

including investigative updates,

official messages, Web links, news

releases, and publications. Additionally, TIVU is actively involved

in coordinating with other federal

and nongovernmental agencies in

responding to victims and their

families. TIVU will continue to coordinate services and assist those

affected by these tragic events and

future terrorist attacks.

■ The Bombing of Pan Am Flight

103—The Lockerbie Criminal

Trial. Pan Am Flight 103 exploded

over Lockerbie, Scotland, on

December 21, 1988, killing 270

people from 21 nations. In recent

years, OVC established a unique

3
partnership with the Scottish government to ensure that the Pan

Am Flight 103/Lockerbie families

received information and assistance. The trial against two Libyan

defendants in a Scottish court in

the Netherlands began in May

2000. With OVC assistance, family

members were able to travel to the

trial and/or watch its proceedings

via closed-circuit television at various remote sites in the United

States and the United Kingdom. In

addition, OVC conducted pretrial

and posttrial briefings in the United

States and the United Kingdom.

OVC set up an international tollfree telephone line that provided

updated information regarding the

trial and linked family members to

available assistance. OVC provided

a grant to the Syracuse University

College of Law to create and maintain a secure Web site to provide

victims’ families with information

about and analysis of the criminal

trial. The Web site contained background information on the case,

summaries of daily trial proceedings, legal analysis, information on

victim services, and an interactive

component to facilitate questions

and answers for family members.

OVC also contracted with Research Planning, Inc., to handle 

logistical arrangements for victim

travel, prepare a trial information

guide for families, and help OVC

document and assess the various

services provided to victims. 

■ Khobar Towers Bombing. Following the bombing of Khobar Towers

in Dharain, Saudi Arabia, on June

25, 1996, OVC ensured that the

survivors of the 19 military service

members killed in that attack were

aware of compensation and assistance benefits. OVC, in conjunction with the FBI, the Department

of Defense, and the U.S. Air Force,

hosted two briefings for the surviving family members and established

a toll-free hotline in the U.S.

Attorney’s Office for the District

of Columbia to provide information

to the families and other victims

about the case and the status of the

alleged terrorists.

■ East Africa Embassy Bombings.

Following the simultaneous bombings of two U.S. embassies in

Kenya and Tanzania on August 7,

1998, OVC transferred funds to the

U.S. State Department to help

with emergency needs of victims

and their families. OVC funded

and helped organize a 2-day briefing for victims and their families in

Washington, D.C. OVC staff also

helped troubleshoot problems victims were having coordinating benefits and assistance and used the

OVC grantee and subgrantee 

networks in the states to locate 

assistance for victims in their communities or home state of residence. OVC provided technical

assistance to and continues to fund

a victim/witness position in the

U.S. Attorney’s Office for the

Southern District of New York to

act as a point of contact for family

members and victims to receive

trial information. OVC also ensured mental health services for the

victims attending the trial through

an agreement with the New York

University School of Medicine.

■ Bombing of the U.S.S. Cole. OVC

provided technical assistance and

funding to the FBI and the U.S.

Navy in responding to the victims

and family members of the October

12, 2000, bombing of the U.S.S.

Cole in the port of Aden, Yemen,

which killed 17 sailors and injured

39 others. This support included

developing a Web site and a briefing book, a toll-free telephone

number, and victim-sensitive correspondence. OVC also provided 

financial assistance to cover expenses for a facility, transportation,

lodging, and per diem for victims’

families to attend a briefing in

Norfolk, Virginia, the U.S.S. Cole’s

home port.

■ Aviation Disasters. OVC has provided ongoing support to Canada

in its victim assistance efforts to

prosecute those responsible for the

June 23, 1985, bombing of Air

India Flight 182, which left 329

dead, including 22 Americans.

OVC also provided assistance and

consultation regarding victims’ issues to NTSB following the crash

of Egypt Air Flight 990 off the

coast of Nantucket Island,

Massachusetts, on October 31,

1999, which killed 217 people. 

OVC Resource

Center Response to

International Crime

Victim Issues

T

he Office for Victims of Crime

Resource Center (OVCRC) is a

clearinghouse for victim-related information, including terrorism and international crime victim issues. OVCRC

produces, collects, maintains, and disseminates information and resources for

victim service providers and allied professionals. OVCRC recently expanded

its international outreach by establishing a link to international resources on

the National Criminal Justice Reference

Service home page at www.ncjrs.org. In

addition, OVCRC provides publications

and resource materials for a number of

international conferences related to victims of crime.

The following publications are available on OVC’s Web site:

■ Coping After Terrorism: A Guide to

Healing and Recovery

■ International Crime Victim

Compensation Program Directory

■ Responding to Terrorism Victims:

Oklahoma City and Beyond

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■ United Nations Handbook on Justice

for Victims and United Nations

Guide for Policy Makers

■ Child Sexual Exploitation: Improving

Investigations and Protecting

Victims—A Blueprint for Action

■ “International Perspectives in

Victim Services,” chapter 18, New

Directions from the Field: Victims’

Rights and Services for the 21st

Century

■ “Special Topics—International

Issues in Victim Assistance,” chapter 21, National Victim Assistance

Academy Text

For more information about OVC’s

Terrorism and International Victims

Unit, please call 202–307–5983 or visit

OVC’s Web site at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/

ovc. FS 000276

The Office for Victims of Crime is a

component of the Office of Justice

Programs, which also includes the

Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau of

Justice Statistics, the National Institute of

Justice, and the Office of Juvenile Justice

and Delinquency Prevention.

5

www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc

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