Historical Dictionary of Terrorism Third Edition

PALESTINE LIBERATION ORGANIZATION • 517revolution, it has jealously guarded its own claims of legitimacy apartfrom any other regime and of independence in decision making, onseveral occasions defying the wishes of its sponsors. These quarrels ledto the PLO’s expulsion from Jordan in 1970 and once again in 1986, itspartial expulsion from Lebanon in 1982, and the denial of use of Syrianterritory for launching raids into Israel from 1983 onward. Beginningin 1982 Tunisia hosted the administrative offices and personnelof the PLO but required Abu Abbas’s Palestine Liberation Front toleave Tunisia following the October 1985 scandal of the Achille Laurohijacking. Following the September 1993 peace accords, the PLOrelocated its headquarters to Jericho and later to Gaza City.The Arab League recognized the PLO as the sole representative ofthe Palestinians on 28 October 1974, therefore denying Jordan any rightto negotiate unilaterally with Israel over the fate of the West Bank. On9 September 1976 the Arab League accepted the PLO as a full member.While the PLO received contributions from member states of theArab League, it has also relied on taxes levied upon the Palestiniandiaspora. The various constituent member organizations of the PLOhave each cultivated their own sponsors and resources as well. Whilethe PLO has received contributions and other material assistance fromvarious Arab states, this does not necessarily imply influence over thePLO by individual states. Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf emiratesdistrusted the revolutionary and secular program of the PLO and haveviewed Palestinians living within their borders as potential fifth columnists.For such regimes, contributions to the PLO were no doubt partlyexpressions of support for Pan-Arab ideals but may also have beenviewed as protection money against possible Palestinian terrorism orrevolutionary activity within their borders. Following the Gulf War of1990–1991, many of these regimes curtailed contributions to the PLOafter it openly sided with Iraq in its 1990 invasion of Kuwait.The original PLO had as its military wing the Palestine LiberationArmy (PLA), which consisted of Palestinian contingents under Egyptian,Syrian, and Jordanian command. These were trained to fightconventional warfare rather than guerrilla or terrorist operations andin practice answered to the orders of their host countries rather thanto the PLO. When it became apparent after 1967 that the independentguerrilla groups were attracting large numbers of recruits, thePLA developed its own guerrilla unit, the Popular Liberation Forces,which lapsed into obscurity in a few years.