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The attack was motivated by the American intervention in the Lebanese Civil War. In the aftermath of the massacre of Palestinians at the Sabra and Shatilla refugee camps by Lebanese Christian militiamen backed by nearby Isareli army units, American troops had landed to try and restore order and central government authority to the war ravaged country. Many groups within Lebanon were opposed to the American presence but it is the militant group Hezbollah--under the code name " Islamic Jihad"--that is believed to have been responsible for the attacks.
The deadliest attack on a US diplomatic mission up to that time left many wondering what would come next. Just six months later, 241 US servicemen would be dead after another truck bombing. And 18 months after the first embassy attack, in September 1984, a car bomb hit the new, more secure US Embassy in East Beirut, killing 2 Americans and 20 Lebanese. After these attacks the American troops were pulled out of Lebanon by President Ronald Reagan.
Along with the Marine Barracks Bombing, the incident prompted the Inman Report, a review of overseas security for the US Department of State.
US embassy