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
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establ ...
and one of eight terrorists who carried out the
massacre of eleven Israeli athletes 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. ...
. He is visible several times in videos of the event, identifiable by his blue- and white-striped jacket. During the failed rescue attempt by
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
n border guards and Munich police, which resulted in the deaths of nine hostages and five of the Black September terrorists, Al-Gashey was shot in the wrist attempting to aid a fellow Black September member.
Early life
In interviews, Al-Gashey has said that he was brought up in conditions of great poverty, mostly in the
Shatila refugee camp
The Shatila refugee camp ( ar, مخيم شاتيلا), also known as the Chatila refugee camp, is a settlement originally set up for Palestinian refugees in 1949. It is located in southern Beirut, Lebanon and houses more than 9,842 registered ...
in
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
. His family was displaced in the
1948 Arab–Israeli War
The 1948 (or First) Arab–Israeli War was the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. It formally began following the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight on 14 May 1948; the Israeli Declaration of Independence had ...
, but always harbored a desire to return. Al-Gashey claimed that the injustice of being forced to live in squalor and rely on handouts while the "intruders" were living on his land fostered his hatred for Israel. This led to his joining the
PLO in 1967. He said that during his initial training, he felt, for the first time, "truly Palestinian ...not just a wretched refugee, but a revolutionary fighting for a cause."
[Personal interview, in '']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 ...
''. 1999.
Role in the Munich massacre
In July 1972, Al-Gashey was one of several young Black September members recruited for what he referred to as "special training", without having any idea what their target might be. He flew to Munich at the end of August 1972, staying in a hotel and even attending a few Olympic events. On the night of 4 September, Al-Gashey met for dinner with the other members of the strike team, along with a senior Black September operative (believed to be
Abu Daoud
Mohammad Daoud Oudeh ( ar, محمد داود عودة), commonly known by his nom de guerre Abu Daoud or Abu Dawud ( ar, أبو داود) (1937 - 3 July 2010) was a Palestinian militant, teacher and lawyer known as the planner, architect and m ...
), who briefed them on their upcoming mission and drove with them in taxis to the Olympic Village. Al-Gashey claims that until that dinner meeting, he had no clue that the team's target was to be the
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
i Olympians.
Although charged with multiple crimes related to the massacre, Al-Gashey and his surviving compatriots never stood trial. Nearly eight weeks after the massacre, on 29 October,
Lufthansa Flight 615
The hijacking of Lufthansa Flight 615 was an act of Palestinian terrorism that occurred on 29 October 1972 and aimed at the liberation of the three surviving perpetrators of the Munich massacre from a West German prison.
When the Lufthansa a ...
was hijacked by two Black September members, who demanded the release of the three Munich survivors. The jailed
fedayeen
Fedayeen ( ar, فِدائيّين ''fidāʼīyīn'' "self-sacrificers") is an Arabic term used to refer to various military groups willing to sacrifice themselves for a larger campaign.
Etymology
The term ''fedayi'' is derived from Arabic: '' ...
were subsequently released by the
West German
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
government.
When they landed in Libya, they were interviewed, with footage of this press conference being shown in the film ''
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 ...
''. Jamal Al-Gashey can be seen seated in the middle of the three, between his cousin
Adnan
Adnan ( ar, عدنان, 'adnān) is the traditional ancestor of the Adnanite Arabs of Northern, Western, Eastern and Central Arabia, as opposed to the Qahtanite Arabs of Southern Arabia who descend from Qahtan. His ancestry can be traced back t ...
(believed to be the guerilla who shot and killed five of the hostages who were tied up in one of the helicopters
When the Terror Began
' (2002). ''Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
''. Retrieved 7 June 2008.) and
Mohammed Safady
Mohammed Safady (born 1953) is a Palestinian terrorist and one of eight Black September terrorists who perpetrated the Munich massacre, in which they invaded the Israeli quarters at the Munich Olympic Village during the 1972 Munich Olympic Games ...
. When asked directly if he had killed any of the Israelis, Adnan Al-Gashey simply replied, "It's not important for me to say if I killed Israeli (sic) or not."
[Press conference, as shown in '']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 ...
''. 1999.
Later life
It is believed that Al-Gashey has spent the time since his release in hiding in North Africa. He is married and has two daughters.
He is the only member of the group to consent to interviews, having given a brief statement in 1992 to a Palestinian journalist. In 1999, Al-Gashey emerged from hiding to give a more in-depth interview in the film ''
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 ...
''. Since he believed that Israeli agents were still trying to kill him, he was disguised and his face shown only in blurry shadow as a precaution. Director
Kevin Macdonald noted Al-Gashey's edgy, almost paranoid behavior throughout the interview, but was able to convince him that the film he was working on would only be truly authentic if Al-Gashey gave his side of the story. During the 1999 interview, he explained,
I'm proud of what I did at Munich because it helped the Palestinian cause enormously...before Munich, the world had no idea about our struggle, but on that day, the name of 'Palestine' was repeated all around the world.
See also
*
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 people who disappeared
Lists of people who disappeared include those whose current whereabouts are unknown, or whose deaths are unsubstantiated. Many people who disappear are eventually declared dead ''in absentia''. Some of these people were possibly subjected to enfo ...
*
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
* Klein, Aaron J. (2006). ''Striking Back: The 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre and Israel's Deadly Response''. Melbourne. .
* Reeve, S. (2001). ''One Day in September: The Full Story of the 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre and the Israeli Revenge Operation "Wrath of God"'' New York. .
The Munich massacre (2000). ''
BBC News
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...
''. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gashey, Jamal
1953 births
1970s missing person cases
20th-century criminals
20th-century Muslims
21st-century Muslims
Anti-Zionism in the Arab world
Extrajudicial killings
Fugitives
Fugitives wanted by Israel
Living people
Members of the Black September Organization
Missing people
Missing person cases in Libya
Munich massacre
Palestinian refugees
Palestinian terrorism
Sole survivors