The Day Liberty was Attacked

And We Did Nothing — History From the Mountain

Fifty-five years ago, on June 8th, 1967, the US vessel USS Liberty, an American flagged electronics ship, was attacked… by Israel. It was an attack that for 55 years has been ignored, swept under the rug by a government hoping the years would wash away the facts. In fact, many documents providing insight into the attack remain sealed to this day.

The Israeli attack by both multiple aircraft including jet fighters, attack helicopters, and multiple (3) torpedo boats lasted approximately two hours. It was strafed with high caliber aircraft machine guns, it was torpedoed, and it was bombed with napalm … for two hours.

Almost two-thirds of the crew were killed or injured. There were 171 crew members injured and 34 crew members killed. They made up one of the most decorated crews in American history prior to this attack.

On June 8th of this year, marking 55 years since the attack, there was a remembrance ceremony in honor of that crew. And again, as always, there has been little to no support from the US Government for this ceremony or in support of this crew. As one former crew member said, “We’re fed up with it”. His account is available with the link.

After reading through articles and what information is publicly available, I find the actions (and inaction) of the US Government unconscionable. The coverup by the US Government, and the protection of its alleged ally, Israel, follows the premise that it was all a mistake. That is itself a lie.

Israeli military claims the American flag and the ship's markings were not seen and understood. Israel claims they believed the ship to be an Egyptian destroyer. This is believed by many in the US military to this day to be an attempt to cover up, a lie, to hide at best the multitude of mistakes and communication errors elicited through numerous independent investigations.

That is not to say the US wasn’t heavily involved in the same coverup. Indeed, it seems our government was up to their necks in protecting Israel in this matter over our own military. Members of the US military, some in our government in Lyndon Johnson’s cabinet, have been convinced the USS Liberty was purposefully attacked, knowing it was an American vessel.

Among the opinions given for this are:

• The Israeli government wanted the US to believe they had been attacked by Egypt. The planes that first attacked with their weapons including napalm bombs, had no markings. One crew member noticed during the attack the Israeli Blue Star underneath its fuselage. there were no other markings on any planes. Prior to the attack, other unmarked planes flew surveillance missions over the ship. The belief is that Israel wanted to draw the US into the conflict known as the 6 Day War.
• A US Naval Inquiry in 1967 found that just prior to and during the aircraft attacks on the ship, the ship's communications were jammed. Israel had no comment on this. But also in 1967, the CIA later claimed the ship was jamming Israeli communications which caused the Israelis’ to attack and the attack was ordered by Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan. In other words, the CIA was giving Israel an out.

Prior to being attacked, the ship's Captain and crew were assured there were two US aircraft carriers near, and the fighter jets would be scrambled to provide assistance if needed, stating the jets could be there “within 10 minutes”. Subsequently, upon being attacked, assistance was requested as soon as possible. The ship sent SOS messages.

At least two rescue attempts were launched from U.S. aircraft carriers nearby but were recalled, according to the Liberty’s senior Naval Security Group officer, Lieutenant Commander David Lewis. The first rescue was recalled by Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara.

Rear Admiral Lawrence Geis of the 6th Fleet speculated Washington feared the fighters would be armed with nuclear warheads, so he put together a second rescue using planes incapable of carrying nuclear weapons. Upon notifying Washington, again McNamara ordered the planes recalled and the rescue effort canceled. Finding this order to cancel a rescue mission impossible to believe, he requested confirmation from higher-ups.

There was a confidential meeting held between Liberty’s senior Naval Security Group officer, Lieutenant Commander David Lewis who was the senior survivor on the USS Liberty, and Rear Admiral Lawrence Geis. This confidential meeting was held in the Rear Admiral’s cabin. The stated purpose was to inform Lt. Cmdr. Lewis of the truth.

It has been said many times, “the truth will set you free”. Not this time.

• This time the ‘truth’ should piss you off and make you sick.
• This time, knowing the truth should give every American pause, and to question what in the hell has been and continues to be going on in Washington DC, within our government, and within our military.
• Whether 1967 or 2022, this incident is still hidden under layers of lies from a multitude of agencies (NSA, CIA, NAVY) for 55 years.

Here’s the truth about the recall of efforts to rescue the ship and crew. Rear Admiral Geis wished to relay this truth to Lewis:

President Johnson ordered the recall with the comment that “he did not care if every man drowned and the ship sank, but that he would not embarrass his allies.”

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Note: I’ve read several articles to form my own opinions. There is plenty out there to read from the survivors. The information offered through Wikipedia is quite comprehensive and offers links to other information. The article published on Military.com is an insightful look into how our veterans feel about this, especially the survivors of the attack, the USS Liberty Veterans Association.