On April 5, 1986, the La Belle nightclub in Berlin, a popular off-duty spot for U.S. troops, exploded, injuring 229 people and killing three, including two American soldiers. Among the wounded were 79 more Americans. The bomb was placed underneath the DJ booth and went off at 1:45 in the morning. It killed Sgt. Kenneth T. Ford immediately. Sgt. James Goins was wounded in the blast but died of his injuries two months later. American intelligence agencies suspected Libyan involvement. Then-Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was known for sponsoring terrorist organizations from Ireland to the Middle East and considered the United States his primary geopolitical adversary. Before the Operation El Dorado Canyon In March of 1986, the U.S. Navy and the Libyan Navy exchanged hostilities over the Gulf of Sidra when the United States asserted the Freedom of Navigation in the area under international law. American F-14 Tomcats engaged in a dogfight with Libyan MiG-23s, and Libyan...
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