On the late night of October 10, 1985, an EgyptAir Boeing 737 took off from Cairo International Airport bound for Tunisia. About 75 minutes into the flight of this three-hour journey, the plane was surrounded by fighter jets without the captain’s knowledge. When the captain requested to land in Tunisia, the request was denied, marking the beginning of a series of astonishing events. Meanwhile, the captain was unable to establish contact with Egyptian authorities.
Faced with no other options, he then requested to land in Athens – once again, the request was denied. As the plane flew over the Mediterranean, unable to reach Egyptian authorities and refused permission to land, there seemed to be no way out in the pitch-black night sky. Just then, four F-14 “Tomcat” fighter jets suddenly lit up their navigation lights and flew alongside the 737.
Those were Americans – following President Ronald Reagan’s orders, to intercept the plane and force it to land at the NATO Sigonella Air Base in Sicily, Italy. The F-14 fighter jets located the 737 with the help of the radar guidance from an E-2C “Hawkeye” aircraft, while an EA-6B “Prowler” electronic warfare plane disrupted and cut off communications as the Egyptian airline captain attempted to communicate with Egyptian authorities. At this point, the plane captain had no choice but to comply with the instructions of these fighter jets.
The airborne chaos can be traced back to the events leading up to October 7, 1985, on a luxury Italian cruise ship named the Achille Lauro. The cruise ship departed from Genoa, Italy on October 3 and cruised the Mediterranean for several days. With a crew of 331 members (mostly Italians) and over 750 passengers on board, when the ship arrived in Alexandria, Egypt on October 7, most passengers chose to disembark to visit the famous city. Around 70 passengers stayed on board to continue the journey to Port Said.
After leaving Alexandria and heading towards Port Said, four fully armed members of the Palestinian Liberation Front (PLF) [a branch of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)] hijacked the cruise ship. The terrorists demanded the release of 50 Palestinian prisoners captured during a PLO operation in Tunisia in exchange for the hostages, including 11 Americans, threatening to start executing hostages and even blow up the entire ship. The Syrian government refused to allow the ship to dock in Tartus, Syria. Thus, the Achille Lauro anchored off the Syrian coast.
The terrorists attempted to use the Syrian government as an intermediary, stating that if their demands were not met, they would start executing hostages – including 11 Americans, and threaten to blow up the ship. Syria refused to relay this message. Later, the PLF members forced the crew to sail the ship back to its original destination, Port Said. After the ship dropped anchor in the sea about 15 miles from the port, the Egyptian government and PLO officials began negotiations, trying to peacefully resolve the hijacking. Egypt promised that if the terrorists did not harm the hostages, they would be allowed to safely leave Egypt and head to Tunisia. After a two-day standoff, the PLF members surrendered on October 9.
As the terrorists left, they told the Egyptian authorities that no one on board was harmed. However, the ship’s captain Gerardo de Rosa held the passport of a missing passenger. The missing passenger was a 69-year-old American Jewish man, named Leon Klinghoffer, who was disabled and in a wheelchair. Soon, it became apparent that this incident was far from a “peaceful resolution.”
During those two days, the whole world was watching the outcome of this rare cruise ship hijacking incident. The Italian government was particularly concerned because the ship was Italian and most of the crew were Italians. On October 9, shortly before a press conference, Italian Prime Minister Bettino Craxi received a report: there were casualties on board. Klinghoffer was killed, and his body, along with the wheelchair, was thrown into the sea.
Nicholas Veliotes, then the U.S. Ambassador to Egypt, initially believed no hostages had been killed until Captain De Rosa showed him Klinghoffer’s passport and confirmed the passenger’s death. Veliotes immediately informed the embassy and stressed that Egyptian authorities must be made aware that Klinghoffer had been killed.
However, the Egyptian side had already reached an agreement with PLO officials and PLF members regarding safe passage. Upon learning about this gruesome murder case and the terrorists being released, the Reagan administration believed this outcome was unacceptable – the U.S. side demanded the hijackers be extradited to the U.S. for trial. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak claimed that EgyptAir had sent the hijackers to Tunisia; this was not the case, as the plane had not yet left Cairo at that time. If Reagan was going to intercept the flight (which would ultimately violate international law), time was of the essence.
Reagan was at the Sara Lee headquarters in Deerfield, Illinois giving a speech on tax reform when he learned that the terrorists had been sent to Tunisia. When asked by reporters for his thoughts on the matter, he expressed disappointment in Egypt’s decision to release the hijackers but was relieved that they were off the ship, and the surviving passengers and crew were safe. However, he insisted that the terrorists must be extradited and face trial.
A reporter asked, “Mr. President, what if they do not hand over the hijackers, how do we get them to do so?”
Reagan replied, “We must find a way to resolve it. If I had a specific answer right now, I wouldn’t be disclosing it.”
Shortly after, that answer took the form of a public operation: F-14 fighter jets forcibly escorted the EgyptAir 737 to land at the NATO base in Sicily. This unprecedented military operation was successful until the commercial plane landed.
Following the landing, a U.S. Navy SEAL team immediately surrounded the plane. The operation’s objective was to control the four hijackers and another passenger – Mohammed Abul al-Abbas, later known as Mohammed Zaidan – believed to be the mastermind behind the Achille Lauro hijacking incident. What started as a terrorist hijacking evolved into a peaceful resolution, then into a murder case, and eventually developed into an international incident of unlawfully intercepting a commercial plane.
U.S. Navy SEAL team members surrounding the EgyptAir plane were now being encircled by the Italian Air Force and Carabinieri (Italian military police), creating a standoff.
As the armed U.S. and Italian forces faced off, senior officers from both sides began to dispute who had the right to control the hijackers. Reagan and Craxi engaged in emergency talks to resolve this crisis between allies. Reagan demanded that the hijackers be handed over to be held accountable for the murder of an American, while Craxi argued that the cruise ship was Italian-owned, and the EgyptAir plane in Sicily was on Italian soil.
Thomas Longo, who was serving as a White House foreign policy aide, played a critical role in helping ease tensions between the two countries. He recalled, “I can still remember Craxi’s shaky voice worrying about a potential firefight on the airport runway. Eventually, Reagan and Craxi reached an agreement for Italy to temporarily take custody of the hijackers, awaiting a formal extradition request through diplomatic channels in Washington. The situation was temporarily defused.”
On October 11, the White House issued arrest warrants for the four hijackers and Abul al-Abbas.
The brief calm was soon disrupted as the situation was no longer just about how to handle the hijackers. The White House now had to consider how to deal with the Egyptian reaction. President Mubarak found himself in an extremely delicate position for multiple reasons: intercepting a commercial flight not only violated Egypt’s sovereignty but also put his political situation in grave danger, with some even calling for his assassination.
Upon learning of the interception, Mubarak remarked, “I never thought a friendly country would send four fighter jets to intercept an unarmed civilian aircraft. I am shocked. I see this as a show, not a heroic act.”
The political pressure was not just on Mubarak. The 1979 International Convention against the Taking of Hostages required Italy to either extradite the hijackers or prosecute them. The Craxi government chose to prosecute, which displeased the U.S. side. When the decision was made to release Abbas, internal turmoil within the Italian government reached its peak, eventually leading to the downfall of the Craxi government.
The Reagan administration was disappointed and angry at Craxi’s decision to release Abbas, yet did not want the Communist Party in Italy to seize power. With diplomatic assistance from the Reagan administration, Craxi was able to swiftly reshuffle the cabinet, which was crucial for broader international affairs moving forward.
Longo recalled, “At the end of 1985, Italy’s role in negotiations on the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty between NATO and the Soviet Union was crucial. Italy pledged to deploy some INF missiles on its territory in response to the Soviet deployment of SS-20 missiles in Eastern Europe.”
Additionally, the White House worked to reduce tensions with the Egyptian government. Despite not receiving approval from the State Department, Ambassador Veliotes praised the Egyptian government’s successful negotiation in the Achille Lauro hijacking incident when facing the Egyptian media in Cairo.
Veliotes recalled, “I said, ‘The hijacking took place before Egypt intervened, and Egypt swiftly resolved the situation, saved the hostages – remember, there were 400 people, and prevented further trauma and potential bodily harm. For political and humanitarian reasons, this was the right way to handle the situation.'”
Italy pressed charges against the four hijackers for crimes including piracy, kidnapping, murder, and possession of weapons and explosives in relation to the Achille Lauro incident. A total of 13 individuals linked to the Achille Lauro incident were prosecuted in Italy, including Abbas and two others, who were sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment. Three of the hijackers were sentenced to 15, 24, and 30 years in prison.
While the Achille Lauro incident eventually reached a resolution, the fight against terrorism continued. The hijacking of a cruise ship by terrorists was undoubtedly unexpected. However, Reagan had made it clear where the U.S. stood on terrorism issues, emphasizing the stance other countries should take.
White House Deputy Press Secretary Larry Speakes stated on October 10, “The President wants to reiterate that it is only when every member of civilized society acknowledges their responsibility – to capture, prosecute, and punish terrorists at any possible moment – that the international disaster of terrorism can be thoroughly eradicated. We will not tolerate any form of terrorism. We will continue to take all appropriate measures to counter these despicable acts, leaving no place to hide for terrorism and terrorists.”
Reagan’s government’s approval of intercepting the EgyptAir plane and the subsequent special operation it undertook stirred controversy internationally. Nearly all members of the international community viewed the U.S. as violating international law. However, with the exception of Egypt and some Arab nations, the international community widely saw the U.S. decision as politically and morally necessary.
France’s Le Monde acknowledged that Reagan had violated international law but recognized the circumstances, stating, “We approve of this action by the U.S. President.” The Economist also reached a similar conclusion, calling the decision “the only way to bring the culprits to justice,” and added, “The U.S. is morally right.”
In 1987, while writing for the Yale Journal of International Law, Gregory Gooding noted, “Overall, the United States received forgiveness at the International Court of Public Opinion. The final ruling demonstrated that the international disaster of terrorism required extraordinary measures, and at least in cases where actions were successful, taking steps to apprehend perpetrators of terrorist acts should not be condemned.”