The Attack on the Liberty: The Untold Story of Israel's Deadly 1967 Assault on a U.S. Spy Ship

James Scott did an extraordinarily good job of writing this book. It reads like a suspense-packed novel, yet it is a deeply moving historical account of a drama that his own father and father's shipmates had actually lived, while their leaders did all they could to pretend it was just another wartime friendly fire incident. Scott did an important public service in presenting this ignominious, drawn-out attack on virtually defenseless American seamen in a way that should help make this important story further known. His father, and all of us who served in the US military, particularly in war, is doubtlessly proud of him.Disseminating the facts of this significant historical event is important because it should remind citizens, as Lord Palmerston did in the 19th century, that nations have interests, not friends. Until about a decade ago, when Pulitzer Prize winning author James Bramford dedicated a chapter to the Liberty in his book on the NSA called "Body of Secrets," I had not even heard of the attack. I had been finishing up a year's tour with the infantry in Vietnam when the attack took place in June `67, and when a sergeant gave me my new assignment orders for the 82nd Airborne Division, he told me to forget my home-leave - that the 82nd had just been put on standby for the Middle East ("great paratroop country") and that I would probably be sent directly from Asia to join them. I'm happy that the war was over in six days so that "my presence" wasn't needed, but a little outraged at how we Americans have been taught to celebrate their victory while our political leaders continue to brush aside the Liberty's significance.Israel's current ambassador to Washington, New Jersey-born Michael Oren, wrote a few years ago that the attack was an accident - case closed! "Fog of war," he claimed. Oren, who did serve in the military (Israel's, not the US', the country of his birth) claims to understand such fog, even though it was a long drawn-out, sustained one-sided slaughter on the open seas on a clear sunny midday. I know something about "friendly fire" during the "fog of war" from the time my squad was ambushed by South Vietnamese marines on our way to set up our own night ambush. Casualties and lots of firing - on both sides! But even though it was dark, both sides were instructed within a half hour to cease fire. Despite the darkness, our different armies straightened out the confusion relatively quickly.The attack on the Liberty was not based on confusion, but rather on the Israeli leadership's calculated perception of Israeli interests. It's time, finally, that our own politicians and media own up to that fact, and conduct our own foreign policy accordingly. I hope James Scott's excellent book, as well as honoring the Liberty crew whose casualties suffered the additional indignity of their own country's disinterest, will help contribute to that goal.

Kudos to James Scott! This marvelously researched and written book simultaneously enthralls and horrifies. The timeline reveals that between the first general distress call that went out from the terribly damaged U.S. spy ship Liberty, effectively unarmed and sailing legally in international waters, and a Navy medical team arriving there was an unforgivable 17 hours. This occurred in relatively modern times--1967--in essentially perfect June weather and therefore represents unforgivably poor performance. If the Liberty's distress call after being repeatedly strafed and then torpedoed by the Israelis was the equivalent of a 911, there are no excuses for the delays, not to mention the interminable PR and political fog in getting the pubic properly informed and Israel upbraided.I finished "The Attack on the Liberty" with a lump in my throat and a brick in my stomach. In the back of my mind, I was hoping for a better settlement for the Liberty crew and their families, and/or a clear admission of guilt and criminal wrongdoing from Israel, and/or a reasonably complete fessing up by our government. The vignette of the author, his father (who was aboard the ship) and one of the Israeli pilots getting together for coffee decades later in the pilot's home was a salve but overall this ship sailed into the perfect geopolitical storm and suffered miserably and needlessly. Israel's denials and obfuscation were unforgivable. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara's office combined with DC politicians and bureaucrats conspired to minimize if not bury the tragedy, though Secretary of State Dean Rusk and to a degree Truman's reliable old hand Clark Clifford come through as two of the better actors (along with a pitifully small handful of U.S. senators, house members and reporters). We can all be very grateful that Mr. Scott had the wherewithal to chase down all the details and compile such a compelling and beautifully written account.

IMPORTANT: THIS REVIEW IS AN UPDATE OF MY ORIGINAL REVIEW PUBLISHED on June 6th 2014 (the 70th anniversary of D-DAY !) WITH IMPORTANT LINKS TO TWO YOUTUBE VIDEOS AND A NEW KINDLE BOOKI originally bought the Liberty book on July 2nd 2012.The story affected me deeply, in particular, just WHAT was so important that the Israelis tried their best to sink the NSA ship belonging to their US allies ?Yesterday I watched a Youtube video which finally answered the question with information taken from government records by Miko Peled, whose father was a senior general in the 1967 war.When his daughter was killed by Palestinian suicide bombers, Miko Peled decided to investigate the whole situation in Israel from original sources to find out why the country where he was born had become so unbearable that the younger generation didn't want to live. From official archives he had access to confidential documents which explained the whole shocking truth behind the conduct of the 1967 war and its predecessors. Peled is convincing, sincere and for once opens up a sole but difficult path to a real opportunity for bringing a possible solution to the Israeli/Palestinian deadlock. But can the Israeli establishment, the APAC organisation and the US government face the reality and deal with it..?The Book Promotion YouTube video is here:The General's Son: Journey of an Israeli in Palestine by Miko Peled, Seattle. Oct. 1, 2012URL:[...] (68 mins)His book was published in October 2012 and can be bought on Kindle:URL: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Generals-Son-Journey-Israeli-Palestine-ebook/dp/B00B5NP808/The BBC published a 68 mins long impressive video on YouTube about the Liberty incident, called "USS Liberty Dead In The Water" BBC Documentary first in 2002, then 2008 and was most recently updated on May 26th, 2014 - one week ago! Interviews are held with the Liberty crew, Israeli naval attackers and others involved. It's well-balanced in content but also damning. A must see.URL: [...]Taking the new book by Miko Peled and the two videos together, the truth of the whole story of the Liberty is likely resolved at last. The Liberty is actually mentioned by the audience in the Peled book promotion !Pass on the information...it's a story of treachery, lies and betrayal but with a possible peaceful outcome. Peled impresses as a sincere, empathetic person. Without him and others like him, Israel is doomed.

Good well written book that tells it as it was. without the political twist and ranting of some of the later 'authors'

Well worth reading. Israel is evil.

a great read my mom said

I'm barely 50 pages into this book and I'm getting angry. Strangely not just at the perpetrators of an unprovoked attack on helpless victims, which I am. Also the author is really irritating me, he rambles on unnecessary. Almost like he's trying to bore you from reading it..For example; instead of saying we did daily safety drills covering a, b and c in what could be covered in one paragraph he gives a day by day account of the drills, you get to the 3rd and you feel an annoyed "yes, you covered this already in detail, twice." So you can easily have removed 25 pages of padding. His first hand account is odd, he clearly wasn't their.Then he seems to be attacking the victims by bringing their divorce from "a beautiful Brazilian wife whose family wanted him to relocate and move to Brazil and buy him a business. Yet, his stubbornness was the fault for the divorce and his attempts of getting evidence while on the Liberty", WHAT??Then you read the author bio and find his education at Harvard was funded by a Jewish funded Scholarship. Which explains why I was starting to feel like the book was written or influenced by an Israeli/s. Hence I decided to look into him personally. The complete lack of empathy to those on board the ship (one supposedly his father) is so detached its mind boggling.I'm a bookworm so reading is one of my true passion in life but I am getting dubious, yet aware books can start slowly. However they don't usually build up with irrelevant drivel about a divorce that happened long before he was born, in a completely different era.Fortunately I've watched a documentary on the topic, yet never in my life have I felt a docu/movie is better than the book; until now. Will update if those views change but right now I feel played.