Early in April 1986 a bomb exploded in a West Berlin nightclub, injuring more than 200 people, including 79 American servicemen. Three people—two soldiers and a civilian—were killed. Ten days later the United States bombed Libya in retaliation, hitting targets chosen to thwart terrorist activity.
The events were among those that prompted Discover to address the topic of terrorism in a 10-page special report that in many ways could have been
June 1996
written yesterday. Staff writer Wayne Biddle found that simplicity and reliability were primary considerations for terrorists—and that many of the weapons of choice were the same as those used today. Instead of high-tech guns and bombs, the terrorists of 1986 preferred sturdy rifles and pistols and stable plastic explosives. Their most advanced armaments were relatively simple handheld rocket launchers; authorities still worry that these can be fired at passenger planes taking off or landing. One photo accompanying ...
