The U.S.S. Iwo Jima (LHD-7): deployed to evacuate American citizens from Lebanon in 2006.
In the summer of 2006, I found myself standing on the deck of the USS Iwo Jima, a U.S. Navy Wasp-class amphibious assault ship. There, I watched Beirut's lights vanish into the dark -- a city I was just beginning to get to know. Above us, bombs tore through the sky, while below, the hum of the massive ship filled the air. That night, sitting in the crowded cafeteria on board, I watched replay after replay of CNN's coverage of this "conflict." This version of the story felt very different from what I'd experienced. They used words like "escalation," "crossfire," "terrorist."
