"The Achille Lauro hijacking, seemingly a straightforward confrontation between terrorists and innocent victims, actually provides a compelling case study in the complex forces that shape the politics of terrorism, particularly with regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict." "It is widely remembered that Palestinian hijackers on board the Achille Lauro killed a passenger, Leon Klinghoffer, because he was Jewish and American. However, few recall that only days later, Jewish extremists bombed the California office of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, killing its director, Palestinian American Alex Odeh." "As director of the White House Situation Room during Ronald Reagan's second term, Michael K. Bohn spent days and nights monitoring these events as the attack on the Achille Lauro gripped the Reagan White House and riveted the world. With this book, he follows two families - the Odehs and the Klinghoffers - as they search for justice."--BOOK JACKET.