In this stark color photo, Napalm (to burn alive the bridge crew), Zuni rockets, machine gun and cannon fire damage is easily seen. The Israelis' first attack priority was on the communications antennas and bridge - to stop any revealing maydays. Only by the crewman using a jury-rigged spare antenna, managed to save the entire crew from a watery grave - the Israelis must have intercepted their calls for help to the US Sixth fleet and, once realizing the jig was up, called off the rest of the attack.
Damage from Zuni rockets (possibly US made) fired from unmarked Israeli Jets. The machine gun damage probably came from the Israeli torpedo boats later. This attack came out of the blue after apparently friendly Israeli reconnaissance overflights - which would definitely have seen the large US flag and hull markings.
Israeli Mystere Jet (French made) lacking national insignia (a war crime), during one of the strafing runs and photographed by Captain McGonagle with a 35mm camera kept on bridge. The crew had no idea just who was attacking them until the torpedo boats showed up.
Photograph taken during high-speed turn to evade Israeli torpedo boat attack.
One of the 3 Israeli torpedo boats. These boats actually machine-gunned the deployed lifeboats from the ship (a war crime). One took aboard a shot-up inflatable raft, probably as a souvenir.
Israeli helicopter, possibly with a commando boarding party, circles stricken ship before being called off by home base. It appeared to be looking for a place to set down on the ship and crew members described seeing armed, helmeted soldiers ready to disembark. Were they planning on gunning down the crew at close quarters and sinking the ship with explosives?
Marked for death: Dazed, but lucky survivors shortly after the attack. Many are covered in blood from their shipmates.
A US helicopter from the Sixth Fleet comes to give aid long after attackers had left.
The Liberty limps under her own power 14 hours after. When attacked, the ship was in international waters, 14 miles off the coast of Gaza and the Egyptian Sinai.
Arrival at port in Malta (when it should have been ordered to the much closer Crete). The Israelis could not sink her, but they sure tried. The only real question left: Were they the only ones trying to sink her?
Defense Secretary Robert McNamara with President Johnson. They called off supporting US planes* from the US Sixth fleet and Johnson is said to have known they were Israelis before the crew even did. McNamara's memory of the day remained "foggy" and dismissive to the end.
Reports from officers on board the USS Saratoga say that planes took off for Egypt, carrying nukes for a preplanned attack, but were soon recalled when it was found out the ship still floated and that sailors had survived.
Back in the port, the crew were threatened to stay silent about it all, with John McCaine's admiral father heading a phoney investigation. The US government has covered up much about all this, even 42 years after. One Texas clown was President for a false-flag attack on the US in 1967 and another Texas clown was President in 2001. Think about it!
Torpedo (probably US made) damage from Israeli torpedo boats. Looks a lot like what happened to the USS Cole after a terrorist attack in Yemen that killed 17 US sailors. The USS Liberty lost 25 sailors and communications analysts from this torpedo explosion alone and only by fluke did the ship not break apart and sink. No Hebrew translators were on board. 34 lives were lost in total and about 174 wounded, some terribly.
