USS Liberty incidentFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search
Coordinates: 31°23′N 33°23′E / 31.39°N 33.38°E / 31.39; 33.38
USS Liberty incident
Damaged USS Liberty one day (June 9, 1967) after attack.
Date: June 8, 1967
Place: Mediterranean Sea near Sinai Peninsula[1]
Result: Liberty severely damaged,
34 crewmen killed,
171 crewmen wounded
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The USS Liberty incident was an attack on a United States Navy technical research ship, USS Liberty, by Israeli Air Force jet fighter aircraft and Israeli Navy torpedo boats, on June 8, 1967, during the Six-Day War.[2] The combined air and sea attack killed 34 crew members (naval officers, seamen, two Marines, and one civilian), wounded 170 crew members, and severely damaged the ship.[3] At the time, the ship was in international waters north of the Sinai Peninsula, about 25.5 nmi (29.3 mi; 47.2 km) northwest from the Egyptian city of Arish.[1][4]
Both the Israeli and U.S. governments conducted inquiries and issued reports that concluded the attack was a mistake due to Israeli confusion about the identity of the USS Liberty,[5] though others, including many of the ship's survivors that could be located four decades later, have rejected these conclusions and maintain that the attack was deliberate.[6]
In May 1968, the Israeli government paid US$3,323,500 (US$22.2 million in 2012) as full payment to the families of the 34 men killed in the attack. In March 1969, Israel paid a further $3,566,457 in compensation to the men who had been wounded. On 18 December 1980, it agreed to pay $6 million as settlement for the final U.S. bill of $17,132,709 for material damage to the Liberty itself plus 13 years' interest.[7]