USS Amberjack & USS Liberty Why? WHY??
January 2nd, 2009 From
>X-Authentication-Warning: ecom2.ecn.bgu.edu: mslrc owned process doing -bs
>Date: Thu, 29 May 1997 16:09:42 -0500 (CDT)
>From: “Louis R. Coatney”
>X-Sender: mslrc@ecom2.ecn.bgu.edu
>To: mahan@microwrks.com
>cc: “Louis R. Coatney”
> “William D. Anderson”
>Subject: Re: USS Amberjack & USS Liberty Why? WHY??
>Precendence: bulk
>Sender: mahan-owner@microworks.net
>
>
>But WHY was LIBERTY attacked?
>
>Possibilities: (?)
>
>1. Mistaken identity.
> Unlikely, from what we know from the crew. It seems to have been
> a thoroughly planned, premeditated air-sea massacre.
>
>2. Staged incident, to “frame” Egyptians.
> … rather like the “Polish attack” on the German Army on 1Sep39
> … or the “Finnish attack” on Soviet forces later that year?
>
> Weren’t the Israeli aircraft and boats clearly marked? Didn’t
> the Israelis know there would be other U.S. vessels in the area?
> Regardless of the markings, wouldn’t the Israelis know that trained
> intelligence people would readily identify them anyway? … if any
> survived, of course. I personally don’t think the Israelis are so
> inhumane — or *stupid* — as to attempt such a ghastly stunt.
>
>3. Reprisal for American injury to Israeli war effort?
>
> Did the Israelis think the Americans were “leaking” the intelligence
> we were gathering? Were we trying to restrain Israeli advances, and
> this was their way to msg “butt out”?
>
> Other things to consider: A number of French, Israeli, Soviet, and
> American subs began “not returning” at some time about then. Was there
> some relation?
>
> Moshe Dayan — Israeli Defence Minister — did penance for the attack
> by touring Vietnam and generally endorsing the Johnson Administration’s
> (incompetent) prosecution of the war … apparently.
>
>Fascinating. 🙂
>
>Lou Coatney, mslrc@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu