Families of Israeli submarine crew receive declassified reports on ’68 sinking

The families of the 69 sailors who died when an Israeli submarine sank nearly a half century ago have received all of the reports generated after the incident.

The reports on the sinking of the Dakar on Jan. 25, 1968, had remained classified until Monday, when the families met and received the documents, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

The wife of a sailor killed on the submarine had contacted the Israeli Navy and asked for all the available information.

The families, who also were provided with a summary of the efforts to locate the ill-fated craft and discover what caused its sinking, reportedly did not learn anything new in the reports.

The Dakar is believed to have sunk as it returned to Haifa either due to a technical problem or a collision with another vessel. A Soviet attack reportedly was ruled out.

The British-made submarine was located at the bottom of the sea near the Greek island of Crete in 1999. The remains of the sailors aboard the submarine were never found.