Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine

Overview

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) is a secular, Marxist-Leninist and Palestinian-Nationalist armed group. Founded in 1967, the PFLP is dedicated to the violent destruction of Israel and Zionism. The group is designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S., European Union, Canada, Australia and Israel.

The PFLP views its fight against Israel and Zionism as “first of all a class struggle.” The PFLP is also opposed to capitalist Arab states allied with the West and has always considered itself part of a broader revolutionary anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist and anti-colonialist movement, dedicated to building Communism.

The armed wing of the PFLP — the Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades — has carried out numerous terror attacks in Israel. The wing is most active in the West Bank and has a presence in Gaza. The PFLP is also active in several Palestinian refugee camps in Syria and Lebanon. One of the PFLP’s most high-profile leaders, airline hijacker Leila Khaled, resides in Amman, Jordan.

The PFLP and its leaders — especially Khaled — enjoy significant popularity with Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Worldwide Terror Attacks

The PFLP gained notoriety for its hijacking many civilian airplanes during the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. The organization hijacked several Israeli planes, as well as American and European airliners, from airports in Europe and the U.S.

PFLP operatives and members of the Japanese Red Army terror group killed 26 people and injured another 80 in an attack at Lod International Airport (now Ben Gurion International Airport) in Israel, in 1972.

Among the most notable PFLP hijackings was the capture of an Air France plane, in 1976. The hijackers were members of a splinter group within the PFLP who flew the plane to Entebbe, Uganda, where they separated nearly 100 Jewish passengers from the others — and threatened to execute one per hour. Israel, however, launched a successful commando raid to rescue the hostages.

The PFLP also carried out the September 6, 1970 hijacking of four airliners taking off from New York, Brussels, Zurich and Frankfurt. Leila Khaled took part in the operation. The incident concluded with three of the airplanes being blown up in Jordan, in front of international media cameras, after crew and passengers disembarked.

Targeting Civilians

The PFLP has attacked chiefly civilian targets, including the 1969 SuperSol supermarket bombing in Jerusalem that killed two foreign students. The bombing was masterminded and carried out by Rasmea Odeh, who has been elevated to iconic stature within anti-Israel groups like SJP and BDS. Odeh and the PFLP attempted to bomb the British consulate four days after the SuperSol bombing.

The PFLP claimed “credit” for the 2001 assassination of Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze'evi and perpetrated many suicide bombings against Israeli civilians during the second Intifada. These included the 2004 Carmel Market Bombing in Tel Aviv — where a 16-year-old PFLP terrorist murdered three Israelis and injured 30 more — and the 2002 Karnei Shomron suicide bombing, which left three teenage Israeli girls dead and injured 27 people. The suicide bomber detonated his bomb in the doorway of a pizza parlor.

In recent years, PFLP members carried out the March 2011 butchering of five members of the Fogel Family — father Udi, mother Ruth, and eleven-year-old Yoav, four-year-old Elad and three-month-old infant Hadas.

PFLP members also carried out the November 2014 Har Nof Massacre, where two terrorists used a gun, axes and butcher knife to murder five Jewish rabbis during morning prayers in a Jerusalem synagogue. The attackers also killed a Druze police officer in the ensuing gunfight, before the terrorists were killed. PFLP Gaza leader, Hani Thawbta, stated: “We declare full responsibility of the PFLP for the execution of this heroic operation..."

Background

Since its founding in December 1967, until the fall of the Soviet Union (USSR) in 1991, the PFLP relied heavily upon funding from the major powers in the Communist bloc, namely the USSR and China. PFLP leader Wadie Haddad was later revealed to be Soviet KGB agent.

In 1968, the PFLP joined the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), also allied with the USSR. PFLP has historically been the second largest group within the PLO, following Fatah which was led by PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat.

The PFLP has separated from the PLO and rejoined it on various occasions. A significant break occurred in 1993, when Arafat signed the Oslo Accords with Israel. The Oslo Accords coincided with the fall of the USSR, prompting the PFLP to ally itself with Islamist regimes like Iran and groups like Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah — all of which reject Israel’s existence. The PFLP has not rejoined the PLO, although relations have thawed since the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) elections when three PFLP members were elected.

Contemporary Leaders and High-Profile Members

Leila Khaled - Born in 1944, Leila Khaled is a member of the PFLP Political Bureau. Khaled participated in the hijacking of TWA Flight 840 in 1969 and El Al Flight 219 in 1970. Following the 1969 hijacking, she underwent six plastic surgeries to conceal her identity in preparation for carrying out the 1970 hijacking. Khaled said the process “[b]eautified my mind.”

In a 2014 interview, Khaled opined that the second Intifada failed because it was not violent enough. Khaled is a supporter of the BDS movement and speaks at many pro-BDS events around the world.

Khaled is often presented as an icon of the Palestinian cause, celebrated in many photos, often holding an AK-47 assault rifle. These images are popular with anti-Israel groups and are often incorporated in apparel. Khaled is also frequently invoked as a female Palestinian role model.

Ahmad Sa’adat - Born in 1953, Ahmad Sa’adat is the Secretary-General (SG) of the PFLP. Sa’adat is currently in Israeli prison for his role in organizing the assassination of Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze'evi. Sa’adat has held the position since October 2001. Sa’adat is also a member of the PLC.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) imprisoned Sa’adat shortly after Ze’evi’s murder. This was following an agreement between Israel and the PA after Israel surrounded the PLO headquarters where Sa’adat sought refuge. In March 2006, Israel launched an operation on the PA jail where Sa’adat was held and brought him to Israel. He was tried in 2008 for his role in Ze’evi’s murder and has engaged in many hunger strikes during his time in Israeli prison.

The social media hashtag “#FreeAhmadSaadat” is a call for Sa’adat’s release.

Khalida Jarrar - One of three PFLP members on the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), Khalida Jarrar was arrested in April 2015, on charges that included inciting violence and calling for terrorists to abduct Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers. Jarrar was eventually sentenced to 15 months in jail as part of a plea deal, when she confessed to all of the charges leveled against her. She was released early, in June of 2016.

The social media hashtag “#FreeKhalida” was a call for Jarrar’s release.

Important Historic Leaders

Ghassan Kanafani - Chief writer, propagandist and spokesman for the PFLP in its early years, Ghassan Kanafani (1936 - 1972) was known as one of of the most influential Palestinian thinkers and authors. He remains a popular figure and is quoted frequently. Among his most famous quotes is the sentence: “We write with the blood for Palestine.”

Kanafani was born in Akko (Acre) and fled during the fighting of the Israeli War of Independence, eventually reaching Damascus, Syria. Kanafani met George Habash, founder of the PFLP, in 1953 and maintained a close connection with Habash despite moving across different countries in the Middle East for several years.

Kanafani was an Arab Nationalist until 1967 when he joined the PFLP and ran the group’s weekly magazine al-Hadaf (The Target). He helped plan the 1972 Lod Airport Massacre and Israel killed him later that year. 

George Habash - The founder of the PFLP, George Habash (1926 - 2008) was known as the “godfather” of terrorism for his role in pioneering airplane hijackings — including the September 1970 hijackings of four airplanes in a single day. Habash served as the PFLP Secretary General from the group’s founding in 1967, until 2000. Habash suffered a stroke in 1980 and died in 2008, of a heart attack, while living in Jordan. Habash went by the nom de guerre “Al Hakim.”

Habash was born to a Greek Orthodox Christian family, in Lod (Lydda) and fled to Lebanon with his family during the fighting of the Israeli War of Independence. Habash received a doctorate in medicine from the American University in Beirut, in 1951.