Terrorist Attacks Against the United States: 1972-2000

1972 Munich (Germany) Olympics The Munich Massacre was a terrorist attack during the 1972 Olympic Games. The first Olympic Games held in Germany since the Nazis hosted the Games in 1936. The Israeli athletes and their trainers were especially nervous; many had family members who had been murdered during the Holocaust or were themselves Holocaust survivors. Eight Palestinian terrorists killed two members of the Israeli Olympic team and then took nine others hostage. The situation was ended by a huge gunfight that left five of the terrorists and all of the nine hostages dead.

1972 Munich Olympics One of the terrorists jumped into a helicopter and shot four of the hostages, then threw in a grenade. Another terrorist hopped into the other helicopter and used his machine gun to kill the remaining five hostages. Three terrorists survived the attack and were taken into custody. Less than two months later, the three remaining terrorists were released by the German government after two other Black September members hijacked a plane and threatened to blow it up unless the three were released. Operation Wrath of God: was a covert operation directed by Israel and its security agency to assassinate individuals alleged to have been directly or indirectly involved in the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics. Their targets included members of the Palestinian militant group Black September, who were responsible for the Munich attack, and members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) accused of involvement. For 20 years, covert Israeli assassination units killed dozens of Palestinians and Arabs across Europe.

Iranian Hostage Crisis November 1979 – January 1981 Left: a hostage is taken out to the media Right: hostages in hospital after release Iranian students took over the US Embassy in Iran. 53 Americans were held hostage for 444 days The hostages were released minutes after Ronald Regan was sworn into office. The U.S. paid Iran 50 tons of gold for the release of the hostages. Who says we don’t negotiate with terrorists?

Beirut, Lebanon: U.S. Marine Barracks Bombed October 1983 Left: barracks before the bombing Right: smoke rises from rubble after bombing Two truck bombs separated to attack bases of both US and French military. 299 servicemen killed total U.S. deaths: 220 Marines, 18 Navy, 3 Army Soldiers 60 American civilians injured.

Egyptian Flight Hijacked November 1985 Left: a map of Europe, Malta is circled and shown in dark green Right: the type of airplane hijacked in this incident Egypt Air Flight 648 was hijacked on November 23, 1985 by the terrorist organization Abu Nidal. The subsequent raid on the aircraft by Egyptian troops resulted in dozens of deaths, making the hijacking of Flight 648 one of the deadliest such incidents in history. The hijackers threatened to kill a passenger every 15 minutes until their demands were met. They started with Israelis and Americans. 60 of 92 passengers were killed, including Americans

Rome & Vienna: Airport Attack Against U.S. & Israel December 1985 Israeli and US ticket counters were attacked by terrorists in the Rome and Vienna international airports. 120 were wounded, 20 were killed: 5 were US citizens Left and Right: images of attack in the two airports

Pan Am Flight 103 Over Scotland December 21, 1988 The hijacked plane, which was headed to New York, was blown up over the town of Lockerbie, Scotland. 270 people died: All 259 people on the plane were killed-180 were US citizens; 11 people in the town died as well. Left and Right: the plane after the crash

Saudi Arabia: U.S. Air Force Base Bombed June 25, 1996 A car bomb destroyed the Khobar Towers, a US housing facility, in Dhahran. 19 U.S. military personnel were killed 515 people were injured; 240 of which were Americans. Left: damage to the towers after the explosion Right: crater left from truck bomb

Kenya & Tanzania: U.S. Embassies Bombed August 7, 1998 Orchestrated by the late Osama Bin Laden. Both embassies were bombed with truck bombs. Kenya: 12 Americans and 200 Kenyans killed, 10 Americans, 12 foreigners, and 4,000 Kenyans injured. Tanzania: 11 Tanzanians killed and 85 injured, 2 of which were Americans Left: aftermath of bombing in Kenya Right: aftermath of bombing in Tanzania

USS Cole October 12, 2000 Left: damage of USS Cole after bombing Right: USS Cole before bombing The USS Cole was bombed in a suicide attack while in a Yemen port. The attacked was orchestrated by the late Osama Bin Laden. 17 U.S. sailors were killed