The circumstances of the attack have been in dispute ever since. Israel maintains that its forces mistook the USS Liberty for an Egyptian horse carrier, El Quseir. Survivors, supported by a host of senior U.S. officials including the late Secretary of State Dean Rusk and former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Thomas Moorer, insist that the attack was calculated and deliberate. The ship was so badly damaged that it had to be scrapped. For 29 years the United States Congress has refused survivors' demands to hear their testimony in an open, full scale investigation.
Survivors maintain that the attack included grave violations of international law.
US law requires that such charges be investigated. This attack, however, remains the only major maritime incident in all U.S. history not investigated by Congress. Survivors attribute that failure to Israel's friends in Congress who hope to spare Israel the embarrassment of an open inquiry. While survivors regard the attack as deliberate, opposing essay viewpoints are welcome. Entries will be judged on knowledge, understanding, clarity and persuasiveness.