USS Liberty
Posted June 18, 2009
During the 1967 Six Day War between Israel and her Arab neighbors, Israeli aircraft repeatedly attacked the USS Liberty, an electronic eavesdropping ship in international waters. Over 200 US sailors and marines were killed and wounded in the attack, out of a crew of about 300. Israel later apologized for the attack and claimed it was a mistake, though there is strong evidence to suggest the attack was deliberate.
The afternoon of June 8, Israeli Mirage III and Super Mystere fighter bombers began attacking the USS Liberty. The air attacks were followed up by torpedo boat attacks. These attacks with bombs, napalm, torpedo, and cannon fire continued for over an hour. The ship carried no offensive weapons. The crew battled valiantly and managed to keep it afloat until it could reach port in Malta. Thirty-four servicemen died and 173 were wounded. The captain, William McGonagle, was awarded the Medal of Honor for his action during the attack.
Since the attack, surviving crewmembers have maintained that there was no way the attack could have been accidental. It was a bright sunny day and a large US flag was flying from the ship. Moreover, the Liberty did not resemble the Egyptian ship the Israelis claim to have mistook it for; that ship was half the size and had Arabic script.
Israeli later apologized and paid about $7 million in compensation. To this day the Israeli and US governments maintain that the attack was an accident. This view is routinely trumpeted by Israel-first Americans who seek to dismiss the matter. The Navy conducted a hurried investigation that accepted the Israeli claim that the attack was accidental.
In years since, former service members who have seen transcripts of National Security Council intercepts of Israeli pilot conversations say that it is clear the pilots realized they were attacking a US ship and that this attack was deliberate. The NSA subsequently released transcripts of communications taking place between Israeli helicopter pilots, that show those pilots did not know the identity of the ship. The NSA has not released the transcripts of intercepts of Israeli fighter pilots, which it officially claimed do not exist. Senior NSA officials have since said that there was no doubt within the agency that the attack was deliberate.
Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Thomas Moorer headed an independent inquiry of former Ambassadors and Flag Officers that reported in 2003 that it was likely that the attack was deliberate and called upon both the Navy and Congress to investigate.
There is strong evidence both that the Israeli attack was intentional and that the Johnson administration did nothing to assist US military personnel while under attack, deeming Israel more important than the lives of our brave servicemen. This is the same administration that dispatched American combat forces to Vietnam in the face of the far less provocative Gulf of Tonkin incident.
