"America's war on terrorism did not start on 11 September. In 1986, long before the overt war in Afghanistan and the covert war against al-Qaida, U.S. aircraft struck at the heart of Muammar Qaddafi's Libya, attacking carefully selected targets in one of the world's hotbeds of terrorism. Code-named Operation El Dorado Canyon, the raid was in direct response to Qaddafi's support of a terrorist act against U.S. service personnel stationed in Europe and the result of President Ronald Reagan's pledge to respond to terrorism with "swift and effective retribution."" "Stanik, a retired naval officer and Middle East scholar, provides a detailed account of the raid as well as an in-depth analysis of its causes and effects. He also describes three other hostile encounters between U.S. and Libyan forces during Reagan's presidency and recounts U.S. covert operations. From a bombing in Berlin to an explosion in the skies over Lockerbie, from the halls of power in Washington to airbases in England and the decks of American warships in the Mediterranean, Stanik has woven a truly international thriller that is all too real and forebodingly relevant to current events. A study in diplomacy, strategy, high-level policy, deck-plate operations, and the unique challenges offered by a new brand of evil, this book is required reading for a better understanding of the ongoing world war against terrorism."--Jacket.

Prologue :The air battle near Tobruk -- 1. Muammar al-Qaddafi and the Libyan jamahiriyya -- 2. "Swift and effective retribution" -- 3. The wave of terror -- 4. Operation Prairie Fire -- 5. Planning to strike Qaddafi -- 6. Operation El Dorado Canyon -- 7. The aftermath of Operation El Dorado Canyon -- Epilogue : Lockerbie and beyond.