USS Liberty Dead in the Water
On June 8, 1967, the U.S. Navy intelligence ship USS Liberty was suddenly and violently attacked by Israeli air and naval forces in international waters. The Israeli army knew it was an American ship and lied when it launched the attack. For 40 years, survivors were barred under oath from telling their stories to the American public. This USS Liberty Memorial website tells her story and is dedicated to honoring the 34 fallen warriors.
After more than nine hours of surveillance of the USS Liberty by flight and radar tracking with almost hourly aircraft, Israeli air and sea forces attacked our ship without warning in international waters. Nine hours before the attack, Israeli reconnaissance aircraft identified the Liberty as a U.S. Navy vessel, and Israeli radar and aircraft have continued to track the Liberty since then. Our ship sails in international waters at less than five knots, has no offensive weapons, and poses no military threat to anyone.
The Israeli army attacked without warning and made no attempt to contact us. The attack killed 34 Americans and wounded 174 others. The ship, a $40 million state-of-the-art signals intelligence platform, was later declared unsalvageable and sold for scrap.
