USS Liberty Survivor, recieves Silver Star for Valor

29. May, 2009 Print This Article! 0 Comments

Navy veteran Awarded Silver Star for Heroism

Edited by Debbie Menon

U.S. Navy veteran Terry Halbardier is presented the Silver Star during a ceremony Wednesday, 27 May, 2009 with U.S. Rep. Devin Nunes.

Forty-two years ago the USS Liberty was attacked as it was docked in the Mediterranean Sea during the Arab -Israeli War, also known as “The Six Day War.”

Forty-two years later, Terry Halbardier is awarded a Silver Star by Congressman Nunes, the US Navy’s third-highest honor for gallantry, for saving more than 260 lives aboard the USS Liberty. The Navy vet was only 23-years old when his ship the USS Liberty was attacked by Israeli fighter jets.

Navy veteran Terry Halbardier never fails to remember the June 8, 1967, Israeli attack on the USS Liberty that killed and wounded two-thirds of his fellow crewmen onboard.

“I think about it every day,” he said.

Halbardier also received a Purple Heart three years ago for injuries during that battle.

U.S. Rep. Devin Nunes, on Wednesday, 27th May, pinned the Silver Star right next to Halbardier’s Purple Heart at a ceremony in Nunes’ downtown Visalia office.

“The government has kept this quiet I think for too long and I felt as my constituent he needed to get recognized for the services he made to this country,” said Nunes.

65-year old Terry Halbardier never thought he’d be in Congressman Devin Nunes’ office receiving a Silver Star.

“I may be the lucky sailor to wear this,” Halbardier said Wednesday as he touched his Silver Star, “but there are 290 other names attached to this.”

The June 8th 1967 attack is widely controversial because Israel was the U.S.’s ally during the war. President Lyndon Johnson declared it an “accident” but those aboard are certain the attack was deliberate.

The attack occurred in international waters off the coast of Gaza during the Arab-Israeli Six Day War. The Liberty, a navy intelligence ship, was there to monitor the war.

Instead, the ship was attacked by waves of Israeli fighters firing rockets, machine guns and napalm bomblets that dispersed a fiery jelly on the deck, according to some reports of the attack.

Halbardier, An Electronic Technician, repaired a downed antenna on deck during the attack, allowing him to issue a mayday to the Sixth Fleet.

The distress call resulted in air support from a U.S. aircraft carrier, but not before 34 of the 294 people aboard the Liberty were killed from fatal wounds and 174 were wounded.

Survivors of that fateful day and other supporters maintain the attack was carried out by orders with the Israeli military and that it was deliberate.

Israeli officials, on the other hand, said the attack was accidental and have since apologized to the U.S. government.

Richard Parker,(former ambassador and political counselor of the U.S. Embassy in Cairo in 1967)in an earlier report said: “Those on record as believing that the Israeli attack was deliberate, include former Secretary of State Dean Rusk, former CIA chief Richard Helms, Adm. Thomas Moorer (a former chief of naval operations) and a host of former directors of the National Security Agency, as well as then-President Lyndon B. Johnson. Parker said he believes that the attack was accidental. But he also believes that a congressional investigation into the Liberty incident, even at this late date, “would be very useful.”

Halbardier said survivors were told by the government officials to keep the attack to themselves and not tell anyone not even their spouses and family members upon returning home.

“I was told to forget it ever happened,” he said.

Crew members were threatened with court martial and prison if they broke the silence.

Donald Pageler of Westminister was among the survivors from the Liberty and attended Wednesday’s ceremony “We all headed out after that, and we didn’t talk to each other,” Pageler said.

But survivors of the attack have talked, and several books, articles and even a Web site has surfaced about the attack and the controversial cover-up. And the former crew members have fought to get the government to disclose more information, but much of it remains classified.

Halbardier said he was humbled to receive the Silver Star, noting that he was just one of many who endured the harrowing attack.

Pageler sees it differently.

“If it wasn’t for [Halbardier] sending out the mayday,” he said, “we all could’ve died.”

Halbardier still has scars all over his body from shrapnel during the attack. Former CIA Analyst Ray McGovern flew from Virginia to see Halbardier receive the Silver Star.

“Now we have a Silver Star- the third highest award for the Navy given to a person without whom there’d be no tale to tell that Liberty would be at the bottom of the Mediterranean,” said McGovern.

“There’s a lot of theories but let’s just say they didn’t want us listening in to what they wanted to do,” said Halbardier.

Terry Halbardier says he still suffers from survivor’s guilt. He continues to tell his story about the truth from that day to anyone who will listen.

*Sources: KIMBERLINA ROCHA, Source: Visalia, CA (KFSN)VALLEY-Jessica Peres
Global Arab Network