Word: gaddafis
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...Please note that I said 'also,' and not 'only.' " German intelligence officials explained that they had been shown what seemed to be only partial transcripts of the Libyan messages intercepted by the U.S. Those summaries, they said, certainly pointed to some Libyan involvement but did not quite prove that Gaddafi had planned and ordered the attack...
Other Europeans, while not putting anything past Gaddafi, were waiting to see the U.S. evidence, with one standout exception. In remarks known to reflect the views of his government, Sir Oliver Wright, British Ambassador to the U.S., told a South Carolina audience that there is indeed "uncontrovertible evidence that the Libyans have been the instigators of the most recent terrorist incidents...
...whether the Administration was ready to take the risks of ordering a hard, unilateral strike. Those risks are both obvious and grave. Some U.S. pilots and other service members might be killed carrying out bombing runs of the scale being contemplated. Even severe military damage might not cow Gaddafi into calling off or slowing down terrorist attacks. On the contrary, he might intensify them, as he seems to have done after the Gulf of Sidra battle. Might Gaddafi carry out terrorist attacks inside the U.S., as he has often threatened to do? "We certainly do not overlook that possibility," said...
Even a clash with Gaddafi's Soviet allies, though it seems highly unlikely, cannot be ruled out. Soviet technicians prudently managed to be elsewhere when American missiles hit antiaircraft radars three weeks ago, but there is a possibility that some might be killed in a new strike. The Soviets, however, appeared to be as perplexed as everyone else about what might happen and what, if anything, they ought to do. "There have been no guarantees concerning action or nonaction on the part of the Soviet Union," said Valery Sukhin, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, at week's end. Georgi Arbatov...
...studied the evidence concerning the disco bombing and the intercepted messages indicating that Gaddafi was ordering a new wave of terrorist attacks. Admiral Crowe voiced his concerns about firepower, and CIA Director William Casey about getting agents out of Libya. But they and everyone else present agreed with Shultz, who said, "We have taken enough punishment and beating. We have to act." For the sake of tactical surprise, it was agreed that the assault should be launched by carrier planes as soon as the flattops could get into position. Reagan directed that all precautions be taken to minimize casualties...