On this day: in history (1983), the United States embassy in Beirut, Lebanon was destroyed by a suicide bomber. The explosion killed 32 Lebanese, 17 Americans, and 14 visitors and passers-by. The victims were mostly embassy and CIA staff members, but also included several US soldiers and one US Marine Security Guard. It was the deadliest attack on a US diplomatic mission up to that time, and was considered the beginning of Islamist attacks on US targets.
The attack came in the wake of an intervention in the Lebanese Civil War by the United States and other Western countries.
A pro-Iranian group calling itself the Islamic Jihad Organisation took responsibility for the bombing in a telephone call to a news office immediately after the blast. The anonymous caller said, “This is part of the Iranian Revolution’s campaign against imperialist targets throughout the world. We shall keep striking at any crusader presence in Lebanon, including the international forces.” #myhistorydiary #history #lebanon #beirut #america #nigeria
Created by Okey Obiabunmo
