The United States should re-evaluate its participation in Middle East affairs in wake of the recent attack on the USS Cole.

Seventeen sailors were killed and 39 injured in Thursday’s blast, which ripped a hole into the military ship during a routine refueling in Aden, Yemen. U.S. officials have suspended naval stops in Aden while they decide whether to use the fueling station in the future.

The United States believes the ship was the target of a suicide attack from a small vessel packed with explosives. If terrorism is proven, it would be the deadliest terrorist attack on the U.S. military since the bombing of an Air Force barracks in Saudi Arabia that killed 19 in 1996.

President Clinton said he will find out who is responsible for the Yemen incident and hold them accountable. But he should react with caution.

The United States should be careful while investigating who is responsible for this attack, so that is does not wrongly implicate innocent parties. Yemen leaders have rejected the U.S. claims that the incident was a terrorist attack and has insisted they do not allow terrorists on their territory.

If the United States pushes too hard on the Middle East, it could cause more terrorist attacks. It could also increase anti-American sentiment, which would lessen our ability to effectively participate in the peace process.

This attack on our military should be a hint to the United States that it should try to be more of a facilitator between conflicts in the Middle East instead of exacerbating the problem.

The United States is pro-Israel, a stance that angers many. The United States should change its role and stop making decisions with a pro-Israel bias. Instead, its goal should simply be getting the two sides to negotiate.

The United States does not need another war. It should step back and examine its role in the Middle East and make the safety of U.S. citizens and military its top priority. Once it finds out who was responsible for the attack, it should not respond with bombs.

Unless U.S. national security is at stake or there is a humanitarian crisis - as was the case with the Kosovo conflict - the United States should tread lightly in international affairs.

If the United States responds with drastic measures, innocent civilians will suffer. Another war also could tip the U.S. economy into recession, as was the case with the Gulf War.

In the past 18 months, 25 ships have refueled in the Arabian Peninsula port of Aden without incident. The United States may have used the convenient deep-water refueling station for the past two years without conflict, but officials should research the risk of future conflicts, and determine if further safety measures are necessary.

The United States needs to look out for the safety of its people but also needs to make sure it doesn’t fuel the fire in the Middle East.