What I Saw That Day Tourney—When U.S. Navy sailor Phil Tourney saw Israeli planes circling the USS Liberty on June 8, 1967, he and his crewmates thought nothing of it. The Israelis waved at the crew and the Liberty crew waved back. Liberty was a unique vessel, unlike any other in the world, with a large tower and radio dishes used for eavesdropping, so the chance it could be mistaken for an “enemy” vessel were zero. The oversize U.S. flag and the large ID numbers painted on the ship also made identification of the ship possible from miles away. Imagine the shock and horror when the Israelis attacked the lightly armed intelligence gathering vessel in broad daylight. A torpedo was fired and struck Liberty dead on. Israeli aircraft strafed the men aboard and dropped napalm on the decks. Torpedo boats machine-gunned the crew as they tried to rescue wounded U.S. servicemen. The Israelis even shot up life rafts to prevent any escape. The attack lasted for hours. And Phil Tourney lived through it. Here is his story. A complete description of the attack, everything he saw that day, and details of the ensuing threats from U.S. military officers and government officials to shut up or face dire consequences. 282p-sc