Many of the victims of the atrocity were residents of Jacksonville, North Carolina

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Tom Cotton (R-AR), John Cornyn (R-TX), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Doug Jones (D-AL), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Chris Coons (D-DE), Bob Casey (D-PA), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Johnny Isakson (R-GA) introduced a resolution that would designate today as a national day of remembrance for members of the United States Armed Forces who were killed or injured by the terrorist attack on the United States Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, Lebanon on October 23, 1983.

The Beirut Memorial honoring the 241 American peacekeepers—220 Marines, 18 sailors, and three soldiers—killed is located outside the gate of Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, a satellite camp of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, in Jacksonville, North Carolina.

“The Camp Lejeune family remembers October 23, 1983 with a heavy heart, where North Carolina tragically lost loved ones to the Beirut barracks bombings carried out by Hezbollah terrorists,” said Senator Tillis. “North Carolina is the proud home of the Beirut Memorial to remember the 241 American peacekeepers who lost their lives on that fateful day, and I am honored to co-sponsor the resolution to designate today as a day of remembrance for those who were killed or injured.” 

Text of the resolution may be found here.

Background: 

On October 23, 1983, an Iranian national drove a truck bomb into the U.S. Marine Barracks in Beirut, Lebanon. The devastating bombing killed 220 Marines and dozens of other personnel. The attack was perpetrated by Hezbollah, a terror group founded, trained, and financially supported by the Iranian regime.  

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