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It was 40 years ago this June 8 that the USS Liberty – a large, armorless, refitted freighter that was gathering intelligence in the Mediterranean at the outset of the Six Day War – was attacked by Israeli fighter jets and torpedoes. Thirty-four U.S. sailors were killed, and 172 were wounded. The Liberty limped back to Malta. A U.S. Navy court of inquiry was on board investigating the damage, but – for some reason – the investigators were not allowed to proceed to Israel to find out what really went on. Orders from the top echelons of the Pentagon nixed the inquiry, and today, the families of the fallen still haven't gotten any answers as to why Israel was allowed to get away with it without even so much as a slap on the wrist – nor even any public acknowledgment that it was a deliberate attack.

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ORIGINAL: FatDomDaddy

Both countries concluded that it was fired upon by mistake and the nation of Israel apologized for the incident and paid $13 million to the survivors and families of the dead.

The families got both answers and money.

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ORIGINAL: meatcleaver

Only the other day on the BBC world service there seemed to be enough American ex-intelligence people saying they strongly suspected it was on purpose.

One has to remember that the '67 war was sanctioned by America and while they might have been pissed off with the Israelis, Israel was the US's foot hold in the middle east and the bigger picture was more important to them. Especially with all the Arab states being friendly with the USSR and were deeply suspicious of the US at best.

As for the 13million, no doubt that was US aid anyway.

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Ennes notes that even testimony by the Liberty's communications officers about the jamming of the ship's radios was classified as "Top Secret". The reason? It proved that Israel knew it was attacking an American ship. "Here was strong evidence that the attack was planned in advance and that our ship's identity was known to the attackers (for it its practically impossible to jam the radio of a stranger), but this information was hushed up and no conclusions were drawn from it," Ennes writes.

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The village of Grafton, Wisconsin, chose to honor the USS Liberty by naming its new library after the ship. The complaints that followed filled the local newspapers and airwaves for months. This is the story of the USS Liberty Memorial Public Library and the controversy that followed.

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ORIGINAL: Jack45

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ORIGINAL: meatcleaver

Only the other day on the BBC world service there seemed to be enough American ex-intelligence people saying they strongly suspected it was on purpose.

One has to remember that the '67 war was sanctioned by America and while they might have been pissed off with the Israelis, Israel was the US's foot hold in the middle east and the bigger picture was more important to them. Especially with all the Arab states being friendly with the USSR and were deeply suspicious of the US at best.

As for the 13million, no doubt that was US aid anyway.

Rockets, Napalm, Torpedoes & Lie

Israel's Attack on the USS Liberty,  Revisited

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Ennes notes that even testimony by the Liberty's communications officers about the jamming of the ship's radios was classified as "Top Secret". The reason? It proved that Israel knew it was attacking an American ship. "Here was strong evidence that the attack was planned in advance and that our ship's identity was known to the attackers (for it its practically impossible to jam the radio of a stranger), but this information was hushed up and no conclusions were drawn from it," Ennes writes.

This is from the survivors' website:
The Wisconsin Library Wars

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The village of Grafton, Wisconsin, chose to honor the USS Liberty by naming its new library after the ship. The complaints that followed filled the local newspapers and airwaves for months. This is the story of the USS Liberty Memorial Public Library and the controversy that followed.