top5/21/2013
Terrorist Organization Profile: |
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| n/a | |
| n/a | |
| West Bank/Gaza | |
| 1964 | |
| Unknown number of members | |
| Nationalist/Separatist | |
| Taxes levied on Palestinians, some foreign aid, and the financial resources of its constituent members | |
| The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) is a Palestinian umbrella organization dedicated to creating an independent Palestinian nation-state. The PLO umbrella includes many of the key Palestinian political groups and terrorist organizations. According to one of its original leaders, circa 1964, the PLO's goal was to "drive the Jews into the sea." Thus, the group's original goals were to destroy the Israeli state. Since its founding, the PLO has significantly altered its rhetoric and goals. The current view of the PLO is that Israel has the right to exist if an independent Palestinian state is established on part of the "historic lands of Palestine." While the PLO is an umbrella organization, it does not necessarily support the goals of all its constituent members, which include terrorist organizations devoted to Marxist goals, world-revolution objectives, and the destruction of Israel. However, the PLO is a nationalist organization that has used terrorism in pursuit of its goals. The PLO was originally formed by the Arab League in 1964. Consequently from 1964 to 1967, the PLO was largely under the control of the founding Arab states. Following the six-day war in 1967, the Arab states controlling the PLO lost much of their legitimacy. Yasir Arafat, of the terrorist organization al-Fatah, took advantage of the resulting power vacuum and was elected chairman of the PLO in 1969. In addition to al-Fatah, several other guerrilla organizations also gained power within PLO at this time. The PLO umbrella contains several significant terrorist organizations, such as al-Fatah, Palestine Liberation Front (PLF), Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PLFP), Hawari Group, and Force 17. |
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| With the signing of the 1993 Oslo peace accords, Yasser Arafat publicly denounced terrorism. As chairman of the PLO, Arafat also oversaw the official annulment of several sections of the PLO charter which had called for the destruction of Israel. While the PLO ostensibly renounced terrorism some years earlier, it has, in the past, utilized terrorist attacks to further its goals. In addition, the PLO umbrella contains both political and guerilla constituencies, some of which are actively engaged in terrorism. | |
Key Leaders
Related Groups
- al-Fatah -- Faction
- al-Saiqa -- Faction
- Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) -- Faction
- Hezbollah -- Ally
- Islamic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (IFLP) -- Faction
- Lebanese National Resistance Front -- Other Affiliation
- Palestine Liberation Front -- Faction
- Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) -- Rival
- Palestinian Popular Struggle Front (PSF) -- Faction
- Palestinian Revolution Forces General Command -- Faction
- Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) -- Faction
U.S. Government Designations
| No | |
| No | |
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Learn more about these U.S. Department of State classifications: Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) Terrorist Exclusion List (TEL) |
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Other Governments' Designations
| No | |
| No | |
| No | |
| No | |
| No |
Global Terrorism Database
4/3/2013
3/27/2013
3/25/2013
3/25/2013
Education’s impact on attitudes about terrorism: Former START TRA takes on new policy-relevant study
1/31/2013
1/29/2013
1/29/2013
1/29/2013
11/21/2012
10/16/2012
9/13/2012
8/27/2012
7/17/2012
5/16/2012
3/28/2012
START investigator and former TRA recipient publish book on the mobilization of right-wing extremism
3/21/2012
2/15/2012
10/7/2011
9/30/2011
8/20/2011
9/15/2010
