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On June 8, 1967, during the Six Day War, the USS Liberty, a state-of-the-art American signals intelligence ship patrolling international waters off the Egyptian coast, was attacked by Israeli jets and motor torpedo boats. The assault included napalm, rockets, cannon fire, and torpedoes. Of a crew nearing 300, 34 were killed and 172 injured, two-thirds of the crew. The ship, flying the U.S. flag and bearing the hull number of an American vessel, presented a visible American presence as the attack began.
Real-time audio captured on board by the Israeli military reportedly shows that Israeli commanders knew they were attacking an American ship. The attack unfolded while the Sixth Fleet was hundreds of miles away, and the ship’s air cover and rescue planes did not reach it in time. The Liberty’s role was to intercept signals and gather intelligence; crewmembers described their work as intercepting communications and bouncing signals off the moon for the NSA, with translators on board and a capability to receive signals across bands. They stressed that the ship was a neutral intelligence platform, not targeted at Israelis.
Leading up to the attack, the Liberty had arrived off the coast of Egypt with two days remaining in a broader regional conflict. Israel promised not to strike first, but the Israelis conducted reconnaissance overflights and radio jamming of distress and tactical frequencies during the assault, complicating rescue attempts. The crew noted a surprising sense of safety, aided by an American flag and “holiday colors,” and by the presence of Israeli surveillance aircraft that circled the ship earlier in the day. An Israeli reconnaissance plane later identified the Liberty as an American spy ship.
As the attack commenced, the crew witnessed intense damage: a forward gun crew killed, life rafts machine-gunned, and the ship set ablaze from napalm that scorched the front of the vessel. The crew attempted to defend the ship with four .50-caliber guns, but the jets’ speed and missiles overwhelmed defenses. A torpedo strike at 02:35 p.m. produced a massive hole (39 feet by 24) and killed 25 sailors in one hit. Survivors recounted the chaos: flooded compartments, bodies, shrapnel, and a ship now listing severely. The crew grappled with fires, sinking water, and a scramble to evacuate wounded to decks and lifeboats, all while under continuing air and sea attack.
With the attack by Israeli motor torpedo boats and gunfire, the ship’s air communications were jammed, leaving the Liberty cut off from the outside world. After the torpedo strike, the Israelis ordered the destruction of sensitive material aboard, a standard procedure during a capture or loss scenario. Crewmembers described destroying computer data and other material to prevent it from falling into enemy hands.
The U.S. Sixth Fleet and American authorities were forced into a political crisis. The attack prompted immediate discussions at high levels in Washington, including President Lyndon Johnson. Documents later showed Johnson briefly informed the press that Israelis had attacked the ship, and declassified Israeli materials reveal that Israel contemplated threatening Johnson with “blood libel” if he pressed harder. The U.S. government pursued a policy of repair and concealment, avoiding public confrontation over Israel’s culpability.
An official U.S. Navy Court of Inquiry exonerated the Israelis, and an Israeli internal report suggested that the events were a series of mistakes with no one at fault, a conclusion that was widely disputed by survivors and families. The incident catalyzed a long-running, complex relationship between the United States and Israel: military cooperation deepened, intelligence-sharing arrangements were intensified under programs like Stone Ruby, and American aid to Israel increased substantially.
Compensation for victims and their families took years to settle. By 1980, the combined compensation and ship settlement totaled around $17 million, with the U.S. and Israel reaching a joint agreement, and the Liberty itself was sold for scrap. The episode left unresolved questions about war crimes and accountability, with survivors and families continuing to seek fuller acknowledgment of what happened and why it occurred.