Difference between revisions of "USS Liberty"
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| − | The USS ''Liberty'' was a Belmont-class technical research ship<ref>[http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/l6/liberty-iii.htm| The vessel's specification]</ref>, belonging to the [[United States Navy]]. The most notable event concerning | + | The USS ''Liberty'' was a Belmont-class technical research ship<ref>[http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/l6/liberty-iii.htm| The vessel's specification]</ref>, belonging to the [[United States Navy]]. The most notable event concerning her was a series of attacks on her in international waters near the town of [[El Arish]] on June 8 1967, during the [[Six Day War]], by [[Israel|Israeli]] fighter planes and torpedo boats. The attacks killed 34 US servicemen and wounded 173, making it the second deadliest attack against a US warship since the end of [[World War II]]. The captain of the ship, Commander [[William McGonagle]], was awarded the [[Medal of Honor]] for his actions during and after the attack. The government of Israel later paid a total of $12 million in compensation to the U.S. government and the families of the victims.<ref>''Raid on the Sun'', by Rodger W. Claire, Random House, 2004</ref> |
| − | The attack is still a subject of controversy. Many people, including survivors of the incident, believe that the ''Liberty'' was targeted deliberately, and that her attackers knew she was an American ship. Israel maintains that the attack was accidental, and that the Liberty was mistaken for an enemy vessel. | + | The attack is still a subject of controversy. Many people, including most survivors of the incident, believe that the ''Liberty'' was targeted deliberately, and that her attackers knew she was an American ship. Israel maintains that the attack was accidental, and that the Liberty was mistaken for an enemy vessel. Prior to the first attack the ''Liberty'' was overflown eight times by Israeli reconnaissance aircraft. In the IDF official report into the incident it was acknowledged that the IDF had identified the ''Liberty'' as a US monitoring ship at least theee hours before the attack, but that this information had "gotten lost."<ref>http://thelibertyincident.com/docs/israeli/IDF-history-report-en.pdf</ref> Despite this admission, an Israeli court ruled that no member of the IDF had been negligent. |
==References== | ==References== | ||
Revision as of 18:16, October 12, 2011
(This article is still under construction)
The USS Liberty was a Belmont-class technical research ship[1], belonging to the United States Navy. The most notable event concerning her was a series of attacks on her in international waters near the town of El Arish on June 8 1967, during the Six Day War, by Israeli fighter planes and torpedo boats. The attacks killed 34 US servicemen and wounded 173, making it the second deadliest attack against a US warship since the end of World War II. The captain of the ship, Commander William McGonagle, was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during and after the attack. The government of Israel later paid a total of $12 million in compensation to the U.S. government and the families of the victims.[2]
The attack is still a subject of controversy. Many people, including most survivors of the incident, believe that the Liberty was targeted deliberately, and that her attackers knew she was an American ship. Israel maintains that the attack was accidental, and that the Liberty was mistaken for an enemy vessel. Prior to the first attack the Liberty was overflown eight times by Israeli reconnaissance aircraft. In the IDF official report into the incident it was acknowledged that the IDF had identified the Liberty as a US monitoring ship at least theee hours before the attack, but that this information had "gotten lost."[3] Despite this admission, an Israeli court ruled that no member of the IDF had been negligent.
References
- ↑ The vessel's specification
- ↑ Raid on the Sun, by Rodger W. Claire, Random House, 2004
- ↑ http://thelibertyincident.com/docs/israeli/IDF-history-report-en.pdf