Location and Weather:
1. On June 8. 1967, USS Liberty was a neutral ship, the United States of America not being a belligerent in the then ongoing war in the Middle East.
2. At all times on June 8, 1967 USS Liberty remained in international waters and did not enter the territorial waters of any state.
3. At no time on June 8, 1967 did USS Liberty enter any lawfully declared or legally recognized exclusion zone.
4. The weather in the area transited by USS Liberty was clear and calm, with winds out of the Northwest, varying between four and ten knots. Visibility was unlimited.
Physical size and appearance:
5. USS Liberty was 455 feet in length and displaced 10,680 tons.
6. USS Liberty was painted standard U.S. Navy haze gray and bore distinctive U.S. Navy white numbering, with black shadow. The letters on either side of the bow were five feet high and the numbers were eight feet high. The letters on either side of the stern were three feet high and the numbers were five feet high. The name of this ship was painted on the stern in letters one and a half feet high.
6. Other than four, fifty caliber machine guns, intended for use in repelling boarders, USS Liberty was unarmed. These four guns were not mounted for use as anti-aircraft weapons.
7. USS Liberty had a highly distinctive shape, one shared by only her sister ships in the U.S. Navy.
Reconnaissance and identification:
8. No later than 0630 on June 8, 1967 USS Liberty was identified in the early morning light, specifically as a U.S. Navy “cargo type” ship by an Israeli maritime reconnaissance aircraft flying at a minimum altitude of 5,000 feet.
9. On at least six other occasions that same day, following the initial identification, Israeli military aircraft over flew USS Liberty and either orbited the ships position before departing, or passed the ship closely at a very low altitude.
10. No later than 1055, an officer from the Israeli maritime reconnaissance aircraft that over flew USS Liberty at 0600 specifically identified the ship he saw as USS Liberty.
Identification and attack:
11. Subsequent to USS Liberty’s course change to a Westerly heading at approximately 0900, she maintained a speed of five knots or less until after she was under attack by Israeli forces.
12. At no time did USS Liberty act in a provocative manner or otherwise present a threat to any other ships or forces in the area.
13. At no time did the attacking Israeli aircraft and ships make a positive identification of their target’s nationality or even type before launching their attacks.
13. The attacking Israeli aircraft and ships unequivocally intended to attack and sink the ship they had designated as their target.
14. The attacking Israeli aircraft prosecuted their assault with multiple firing passes.
15. The attacking Israeli ships prosecuted their onslaught by launching five torpedoes at their target, one of which struck the ship, followed by raking their target with machine gun fire.
16. The Israeli attackers dispatched helicopters to the area of the attack.
Casualties:
17. The Israeli attackers killed 34 Americans and wounded another 172 Americans. All of the survivors suffer from severe PTSD.
18. No Israelis were killed or wounded.
