Adnan Al-Gashey (1946
– 1978 or 1979) was a Palestinian terrorist and one of eight
Black September Organization
The Black September Organization (BSO) ( ar, منظمة أيلول الأسود, translit=Munaẓẓamat Aylūl al-Aswad) was a Palestinian militant organization founded in 1970. Besides other actions, the group was responsible for the assass ...
militants who
invaded the Israeli quarters at the Munich Olympic Village during the
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...
. The group took hostage nine of the Israeli Olympic delegation after killing Israeli wrestling coach
Moshe Weinberg
Moshe Weinberg ( he, משה ויינברג sometimes Weinberger; 19 September 1939 – 5 September 1972) was an Israeli wrestler who was the coach of the national team, as well the coach of Hapoel Tel Aviv.
He began his career in Hapoel Haifa. H ...
and weightlifter
Yossef Romano
Yossef Romano ( he, יוסף רומנו; 15 April 1940 – 5 September 1972), also known as Joseph Romano or Yossi Romano, was a Libyan-born Israeli weightlifter with the Israeli team that went to the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Ger ...
in the initial takeover. He was the uncle of
Jamal Al-Gashey
Jamal Al-Gashey ( ar, جمال الجاشي; born 1953) is a Palestinian terrorist who was a member of the Black September offshoot of the Palestine Liberation Organization and one of eight terrorists who carried out the massacre of eleven Is ...
, who also took part in the Munich operation.
Early life
Al-Gashey was a former student of nursing in Tripoli, Libya and had won a scholarship to study chemistry at the American University of Beirut.
Unlike some of his fellow
fedayeen, he did not have any connections with Germany, but was described by author Simon Reeve as "resourceful, reliable and committed."
Role in the Munich massacre
Though Al-Gashey was one of eight terrorists involved in the attack at the Israeli delegations quarters in the Munich Olympic Village, unlike some of the other terrorists, he is not easily identifiable in any of the footage of the day's events. Any mention of Al-Gashey in the crisis at all is identified by author Simon Reeve, who in his book ''One Day in September'' (2000) cites Al-Gashey as the terrorist that machine-gunned the Israelis in the helicopter. After the shootout at
Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base
Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base (German: "Fliegerhorst Fürstenfeldbruck" or "Flugplatz Fürstenfeldbruck") is a former German Air Force airfield near the town of Fürstenfeldbruck in Bavaria, near Munich, Germany.
Fürstenfeldbruck became famous firs ...
, he was captured along with his nephew Jamal Al-Gashey, and Mohammed Safady.
Aftermath
Al-Gashey, his nephew Jamal Al-Gashey, and Mohammed Safady were released seven and a half weeks later on 29 October 1972, when Lufthansa flight 615 from Damascus to Frankfurt was hijacked by Arab terrorists. The hijackers demanded the release of the three surviving terrorists or they would blow up the plane. Without consulting the Israeli government, the West German government acquiesced to the terrorist demands.
In a press conference given by the three surviving terrorists in Tripoli shortly after their release from Germany, Adnan Al-Gashey was asked by a British journalist if he, personally, shot the Israelis. Al-Gashey replied in English:
Al-Gashey: It's not important to say if I killed Israeli or not.
Reporter: But they were unarmed, the Israeli hostages, did you shoot any of them yourself?
Al-Gashey: They are unarmed, but we have to know that Israeli is our enemy, Israel is our enemy...so we have to kill Israeli because...(cut off by spokesman interjecting)
Death
The circumstances of Al-Gashey's death remain uncertain. In the Academy Award-winning documentary ''
One Day in September
''One Day in September'' is a 1999 documentary film directed by Kevin Macdonald examining the 5 September 1972 murder of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany. Michael Douglas provides the sparse narration through ...
'' (2000), it is stated that Israeli Mossad assassination squads killed both him and Mohammad Safady. However, in his book ''Striking Back: The 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre and Israel's Deadly Response'', Aaron J. Klein states that Mossad reported Al-Gashey died naturally in Dubai sometime between 1978 and 1979, from a genetic heart condition.
It can be assumed, however, that by the year 2000, with the publishing of Simon Reeve's book, Al-Gashey had died, as his wife gives a description of him in the past tense.
Portrayal in film
Al-Gashey is portrayed by French Moroccan actor Karim Saidi in the 2005 film ''
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
''.
See also
*
Palestine Liberation Organization
*
Operation Wrath of God
Operation "Wrath of God" ( he, מבצע זעם האל ''Mivtza Za'am Ha'el''), also known as Operation "Bayonet", was a covert operation directed by Mossad to assassinate individuals involved in the 1972 Munich massacre in which 11 members of t ...
*
List of hostage crises
This is a list of notable hostage crises by date.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Hostage Crises
+
Hostage crises
A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liber ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gashey, Adnan Al-
1946 births
1970s deaths
Munich massacre
Members of the Black September Organization
Palestinian terrorism
Anti-Zionism in the Arab world
20th-century criminals
20th-century Muslims
Extrajudicial killings