We are always being told that Israel is a close US ally. The degree of closeness ranges from "our closest ally in the Middle East" to "our best ally in the world", depending which talking head or politician is speaking. But WHY exactly do they consider Israel an ally? Israel provides nothing to the United States, yet WE provide security guarantees, political cover, and billions in taxpayer assistance each year in both military and economic aid.
Israel tried to sink a US warship back in 1967, are we afraid they will win a war against us if we don't pay them ransom money each year?
Israel attacks USS Liberty
Survivors of the USS Liberty Look for Answers 55 Years Later
They also were belligerents in the Lebanese Civil War, involved in the killing of defenseless civilians in refugee camps, and attempted to defy US Marine troops guarding a defensive zone established to prevent further bloodshed. Not long after, the US Marine barracks in Beirut was destroyed by a "suicide bomb".
Sabra and Shatila massacre
Sabra and Shatila massacre: What happened in Lebanon in 1982?
How a US Marine Single-handedly Stopped Israeli Tanks in Lebanon
Beirut barracks blown up
Prior to that, Israel was harassing US Marines, putting their lives in danger by illuminating their positions at night with spotlights shining on them from Israeli helicopters, amongst other forms of harassment.
Israel Charged With Systematic Harassment of U.S. Marines
It is said that the explosives that were used in the attack on the Marine barracks was highly sophisticated, a type of explosive available only to the US military and Israel.
That information, however, has been scrubbed from the Internet as far as I can tell.
Then we go forward to September 11, 2001..
Dancing Israelis Incident
And let's not forget that JFK had demanded Israel allow inspections of their Dimona nuclear facility to ensure that they weren't developing nuclear weapons..
When a U.S. president demanded inspections of a nuclear facility in the Middle East (and failed)
Several months later he was assassinated.
So again, someone please explain to me why Israel is considered to be a US ally, our "greatest".