Word: libyans
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...since Reagan took office in 1981, Gaddafi has been the Administration's archfiend, an erratic adversary whose sinister hand was perceived behind a tangle of bloody atrocities. As early as 1981, the CIA accused Libya of being the most prominent sponsor of international terrorism, and Reagan talked ominously about Libyan hit squads sent out to assassinate U.S. officials. That same year, F-14 fighter jets shot down two Soviet-built Libyan fighters after a sudden dogfight over the Gulf of Sidra. Last June, when TWA Flight 847 was hijacked and 39 Americans were held hostage, the Administration saw Gaddafi...
When darkness came, the sea was roiled by 15-ft. swells. Kelso had indeed postponed any action because, as one officer put it, "the Libyans don't fly at night." At 9:26 p.m., two A-6 Intruders roared from the deck of the America. They flew toward a Libyan attack boat that was moving toward the U.S. armada. When the vessel got within 40 miles of U.S. ships, the A-6 jets let fly with Harpoon missiles that skimmed along the sea and rammed into the Libyan boat, setting it ablaze...
...Larry Speakes began a press briefing that was carried live by all the networks. When he finished describing the Libyan and American actions, Speakes added, "We reserve the right to take additional measures as events warrant." The first question was, "Is this war?" Speakes' tight-lipped answer did not exactly defuse the query. "I can't characterize it as war," he said. When Speakes' press conference ended, Weinberger began one of his own at the Pentagon, in which he reported an encounter with a second Libyan boat...
...bombers flying over the gulf had spotted a Soviet-built Nanuchka- missile Corvette sailing west out of the Libyan port of Benghazi. When the ship passed the twelve-mile limit, the A-6s attacked. Two hours later, at 1:15 a.m. Libyan time, the Aegis system aboard the Yorktown spotted a French- built Combattante patrol boat cruising the darkened waters of the gulf north of the "line of death." As the ship neared the American fleet, it speeded up. Kelso ordered the firing of two Harpoon missiles. "They saw a flash," said one official, "but we really aren't sure...
About four hours after the first strike on the Surt missile base, American sensors again detected radar from the site scanning the gulf. Weinberger later said he "would assume" that Soviet technicians helped the Libyans repair the base. American planes launched two more HARM missiles, and again the radar went dead. The final American strike occurred later that morning: a pair of fighter jets hit at least one Libyan vessel near Benghazi...