Operation El Dorado Canyon

Operation El Dorado Canyon was the name of the American air-strikes against Libya on April 15, 1986.

Reasons for the Attack

After the La Belle discotheque bombing in West Berlin on April 5, which killed two American soldiers and wounded 60 others, US President Ronald Reagan decided to strike at Libya. According to intelligence, Libyan agents from East Germany had planted the bomb and praised the attack over cables. The Reagan administration believed Libya also was supporting the Abu Nidal group, which was behind numerous attacks including the Rome and Vienna Airport Attacks. This lead American military planners to draw up plans to hit terrorist targets in Tripoli and Benghazi.

The Attack

After several days of "diplomacy," Reagan ordered the strike on Libya on the 14th. F-111 aircraft flying from RAF Lakenheath in England and the US Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean struck five targets at 2am on the 15th that were hoped would reduce the ability of Libya to support and train terrorists. The attack lasted about ten minutes; however, the bombs were not exactly accurate. Several targets were hit and destroyed, but civilian sites in Tripoli were hit as well.

Casualties

Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's adopted daughter was killed and two of his sons injured. The Colonel himself was targeted as well, although several bombs exploded near his tent but did not injure him. A bomb landed on his tent but failed to detonate due to mechanical failure. In all, some 30 civilians died in the attacks as well as an unknown number of military personel. Two American pilots died when their F-111 was shot down over the Gulf of Sidra.

Retaliation

There was some retaliation. Libya's response was to fire several Scud missiles at US Coast Guard stations on the Italian island of Lampedusa, which exploded harmlessly in the sea nearby. In Beirut, Lebanon two British and one American hostage held by Hezbollah were killed. Gaddafi pushed down a revolt against him and condemned the United States but did not mention specifically a military retaliation, although some say this came in the form of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.

Aftermath

Many nations condemned the attack, notably all the Arab states and France, the Soviet Union, and other nations. The US received support from Britain, Australia, and Israel, among few others. America's first foray into a Middle-East war met with limited success (it did not stop terrorist operations by Libya or any other group). It's doctrine of declaring a "war on terror" (called a "Strike Against Terror" in the 1980's press) was not repeated until 2001. Still, it showed what could happen to states that supported terrorism.