As a former CT I am biased because one of my old CT instructors was a survivor who was supposed to be in the collection room before it was obliterated by the torpedo ... we studied this attack in our A-school as a failure of mission self-defense (cryptologically speaking) . I've read everything UNCLAS or DECLAS on this and I agree with the theory put out by a writer in the Naval Institute's Proceedings and the book Assault on the Liberty. The most logical reason for why they attacked was that they Israelis delayed the invasion of the Golan until the Liberty was out of the way. Forget Bamford as his "killing POWs" theory holds no water.
Having worked with the Israelis I know that protecting Israel is job #1. The Liberty was bringing undue attention from the Russian Intel, Israel decided to make an example of it. Maybe they thought it would be acceptable to mistake it for an Egyptian tanker. It worked and the best effect of it was to move collection from AGRs to warships.
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