Reagan Studies Strike at Libya, U.S. Envoy Says

WASHINGTON —  President Reagan was said today to be studying the possibility of a military strike against Libya as the United States compiled evidence that the renegade Arab republic was involved in the fatal bombing of a West Berlin disco.

Ambassador Richard Burt, the U.S. envoy to West Germany, said there were “very clear indications that there was Libyan involvement” in the nightclub bombing that killed an American Army sergeant and a Turkish woman.

When asked whether he favored a military move against Libyan leader Col. Moammar Kadafi, Burt said that Reagan was “studying this issue right now.”

One U.S. diplomat in the divided city, speaking on condition he not be identified, said: “The Libyan angle is being explored very vigorously. Kadafi is an active suspect.”

On his return from a California vacation Sunday, Reagan refused comment when reporters asked him whether he planned to strike at the Libyan leader. He ignored questions today as he left the White House to watch the start of the Baltimore Orioles’ season-opening baseball game against the Cleveland Indians.