1970 Munich bus attack
Part of Terrorism in Germany
LocationMunich-Riem Airport, Munich, West Germany
Date10 February 1970
Attack type
Mass shooting, grenade attack
WeaponsSubmachine guns, hand grenades
Deaths1
Injured23
PerpetratorPopular Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine

On 10 February 1970, a bus carrying passengers to an El Al airplane at the Munich-Riem Airport, West Germany was attacked by terrorists. One person was killed and 23 were wounded in the attack.[1]

Attack

An El Al Boeing 707 jet was preparing to take off for London when three terrorists opened fire with submachine guns and hand grenades on a bus carrying passengers to the plane.[1] The attack killed one person and wounded 23 others.[1] The pilot of the plane was slightly wounded when he wrestled one grenade-wielding terrorist to the ground while the other terrorists were shooting.[2] After a brief gunfight with police the terrorists were arrested. As the actor Assi Dayan, a son of the Israeli Defence Minister was among the passengers some suggested him to have been the target of the attack, while others disregarded this by noting that the attack was indiscriminate and random as Dayan himself was unhurt.[1][3] Another passenger was actress Hanna Maron who was critically wounded and had to have her leg amputated.[4]

Aftermath

The Popular Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PDFLP), as well as the "Action Organization for the Liberation of Palestine" in Jordan claimed responsibility for the attack.[5] The three terrorists arrested for the attack were identified as Mohammed Hadidi and Mohammed Hanasi from Jordan, and Abdul Rachman from Egypt.[1] The terrorists were released and deported later the same year in response to the Dawson's Field hijackings.[6][7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "West German Government Condemns Arab Terrorist Attack on El Al Airline". JTA. 12 February 1970.
  2. ^ "Arab Terrorists Attack El Al Passengers; Pilot Disregards Own Safety to Save Others". JTA. 11 February 1970.
  3. ^ "Grenades Miss Dayan Son In Arab Attack in Munich". The New York Times. 11 February 1970.
  4. ^ "Iconic Israeli actress Hanna Maron dies at age 90". The Jerusalem Post. 30 May 2014.
  5. ^ Rubin, Barry; Rubin, Judith Colp (2015). Chronologies of Modern Terrorism. Routledge. p. 186. ISBN 9781317474654.
  6. ^ "Few Arab Terrorists Are Punished for Hijackings and Killings". The New York Times. 20 December 1973.
  7. ^ "Terrorist Incidents against Jewish Communities and Israeli Citizens Abroad, 1968-2003". International Institute for Counter-Terrorism. 20 December 2003. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2018.

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