43 years after Beirut terror attack killed 241 Americans, rabbi recalls chaplains’ extraordinary response

On 23 October 1983, suicide bombers attacked the US Marine barracks in Beirut, killing 241 American service members. Rabbi Arnold Resnicoff, there to support troops as a Navy chaplain, helped search the rubble and comfort the wounded alongside Catholic chaplain George Pucciarelli. Their response became a lasting example of chaplains supporting people across religious differences.

Resnicoff had stayed with Pucciarelli rather than Protestant minister Danny Wheeler, a decision he believes may have saved his life. The dead included 220 Marines, 18 Navy personnel and three Army personnel; the Navy losses included its medical detachment. Resnicoff used his bloodied kippah to wipe dust and blood from the wounded, and Pucciarelli later covered his head with a piece of his uniform. Wheeler was the last living service member pulled from the wreckage, five hours after the explosion.