The campaign didn't start until march in 99 (you'll have to excuse me for not knowing the date, i should really know the exact date but i'm old and tired) so it had to have been after that.
The US unit i served with at the time was the 401'st so we probably never were close to where you were at.
Like I said, early 99. Not too long after we dropped Tomahawks. I distinctly recall being in Haifa for Christmas of 98. We cut our port visit short to head out to sea and quickly went to GQ for action.
World situation was relatively calm at the time. We were expecting a mellow cruise. Our captain loved it though, meant more medals and practically guaranteed promotion. He was so excited to be the first to launch. In fact the Philippean Sea set records for most Tomahawks launched in a 24 hour period, one week, most consecutive launches, etc. That practically gave him creamed pants. The finished touch was when we got back and he was interviewed by CNN and all the local media as well.
I felt nauseous. That someone would use something so brutal and ugly and get celebrity from it. From that point on I stopped looking at the Navy as a patriotic duty to my country and just used it to further my career. I got my ESWS, and fought to get into the advanced electronics program and started working on my civilian resume. After seeing a lot of ugly shit I realized how important it was to work hard for something good, for myself. A big part of the problem with the world is too many people dont want to work hard to make newer, better things for themselves and their kids. They'd rather try force to take it from someone else who is trying to make their own lives better.