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October 23, 2008
They came in Peace
Twenty-five years ago today, Hezbullah, under what is believed to be the direct orders of Iran, made their largest and most successful attack against America.
"Their loss is not in vain and we will not break faith with them in the tasks we have ahead... We did not know they would be the first casualties -- among the first -- in the war on terrorism" - Lt. Gen. Jan C. Huly, USMC
In Lebanon, we have some 1,600 Marines, part of a multinational force that's trying to help the people of Lebanon restore order and stability to that troubled land. Our Marines are assigned to the south of the city of Beirut, near the only airport operating in Lebanon. Just a mile or so to the north is the Italian contingent and not far from them, the French and a company of British soldiers.
This past Sunday, at 22 minutes after 6 Beirut time, with dawn just breaking a truck, looking like a lot of other vehicles in the city, approached the airport on a busy, main road. There was nothing in its appearance to suggest it was any different than the trucks or cars that were normally seen on and around the airport. But this one was different. At the wheel was a young man on a suicide mission.
The truck carried some 2,000 pounds of explosives, but there was no way our Marine guards could know this. Their first warning that something was wrong came when the truck crashed through a series of barriers, including a chain-link fence and barbed wire entanglements. The guards opened fire, but it was too late. The truck smashed through the doors of the headquarters building in which our Marines were sleeping and instantly exploded. The four-story concrete building collapsed in a pile of rubble.
More than 200 of the sleeping men were killed in that one hideous, insane attack. Many others suffered injury and are hospitalized here or in Europe. This was not the end of the horror. At almost the same instant, another vehicle on a suicide and murder mission crashed into the headquarters of the French peacekeeping force, an eight-story building, destroying it and killing more than 50 French soldiers.
President Ronald Reagan, 27th Oct. 1983,
Our Marines on sentry duty had their ammunition clips in their pockets. There were no barriers around the barracks, other than a bit of wood and plaster. When the bomb blew, the building was lifted off its foundation. When it came down, it collapsed in a heap of cinder blocks, plaster, and dust. All told, 241 Americans lost their lives in the blast. It was the worst day for the Marines since the battle of Iwo Jima and the worst day for the US military since the first day of the Tet Offensive in Viet Nam.
25 years have come and gone. Our first duty is to remember.
If you have a minute, visit the Beirut Veterans Organization, and lend your support to the Beirut Stamp Initiative.
Thank you Kevin.
Posted by LindaSoG at October 23, 2008 08:56 PM
Comments
Nice selection of material. This gave a better sense of context than I have seen elsewhere.
Posted by: Kevin K. at October 24, 2008 09:15 PM
Semper Fi boys.
I knew some of the survivors. They were all shell shocked years later
Posted by: Bruce B at October 26, 2008 07:49 PM