WORLD : Suspect Jailed in Disco Bombing That Led to Retaliation on Libya
A West German man of Arab origin has been arrested on charges of organizing the 1986 discotheque bombing that led then-President Ronald Reagan to bomb Libya, authorities announced today.
The 32-year-old suspect was seized at his home on a warrant accusing him of “preparing and organizing the attack on the La Belle discotheque.” Reagan blamed Libya for the attack, in which two American servicemen and a Turkish woman died, and he sent U.S. planes to bomb Tripoli in retaliation.
West Berlin Justice Department spokesman Cornel Christoffel said the man, who denied involvement in the bombing, was arrested when investigators searched six apartments in West Berlin and a cell in the city’s Tegel prison.
“The other five suspects are on the run,” he added.
More than 200 people, including many off-duty soldiers, were wounded in the La Belle bombing, which U.S. intelligence sources said was ordered by the Libyan Embassy in East Berlin.
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