Dear Mr. Tourney: Thank You for your letter to President George W. Bush concerning USS LIBERTY. I am answering on behalf of the President.
I can certainly understand your motivation in writing. The People of the United States will forever remain in debt to those crewmen of USS LIBERTY who sacraficed their lives in the service of their country. In reference to your letter, the main question posed to the investigative report was whether the attack by the Israeli armed forces on USS LIBERTY was deliberate. The Navy convened a court of inquiry immediately after the event to review this question and address other concerns. Much of the hearings and testimonies were classified as they dealt with the nature of the Navy's electronics and communications technology. Large portions of this report have subsequentaly been declassified.
Israel accepted responsibility for the attack and made a public apology for the incident. Additionally, as you already know, the Government of Israel paid reparations for the death and injuries suffered by your shipmates on LIBERTY and for the damage to the ship caused by this tragic and unfortunate incident.
The results of the investigations, and the conciliatory actions of the Government of Israel, were considered satisfactory to Administration and Defense officials. At this time, there is no precendent to reinvestigate this case and no plans have been made to do so. Please be assured that we have taken measures to prevent an incident of this tragic nature from occurring in the future. Again, thank you for writing to the President. Sincerely, (sig) CHRISTOPHER J. ROUIN Director, White House Liason Office Office of the Secretary of the Navy
LBJ's lawyer, Clifford:
"I do not know to this day at what level the attack on the LIBERTY was authorized and I think it is unlikely that the full truth will ever come out. Having been for so long a staunch supporter of Israel, I was particularly troubled by this incident; I could not bring myself to believe that such an action could have been authorized by Levi Eshkol. Yet somewhere inside the Israeli government, somewhere along the chain of command, something had gone terribly wrong--and then had been covered up. I never felt the Israelis made adequate restitution or explanation for their actions..."