Historical Dictionary of Terrorism Third Edition

POPULAR FRONT FOR THE LIBERATION OF PALESTINE-GENERAL COMMAND • 541at the Carmel market in Tel Aviv left three Israelis dead. The PFLPhas been critical of al Fatah in its conflict with Hamas and, in turn,Hamas has allowed the PFLP freedom within the Gaza Strip. On 17October 2008 the PFLP held a rally in Khan Younis, in the GazaStrip, to commemorate the seventh anniversary of the assassinationof tourism minister Zeevi.POPULAR FRONT FOR THE LIBERATION OF PALESTINE-GENERAL COMMAND (PFLP-GC). The PFLP-GC, led by AhmadJibril, split away from the Popular Front for the Liberationof Palestine (PFLP) in April 1968 when Jibril became disenchantedwith the preoccupation of the PFLP leader, George Habash, with issuesof ideology. While this group claimed that its primary missionwas the total destruction of Israel and establishment of a Palestinianstate in its place, its leader appeared quite ready to hire out the servicesof the group on an entrepreneurial basis without regard for thepolitics of his patrons. The group joined the Rejection Front in 1974but was expelled from it in 1977. It was also expelled from the PalestineLiberation Organization (PLO) in 1983 and has remainedopposed to the PLO, although it ceased direct attacks on the PLOafter 1990. From 1983 to 1989 it was sponsored by Libya and Syria.After being ordered out of Libya in 1989, it then received Iranianstate sponsorship along with state support from Syria.Ahmad Jibril, a Palestinian, was a former captain in the Syrianarmy and head of the original Arab Liberation Front, which hadhelped form the PFLP in 1967. While agreeing with Habash’s principleof pursuing armed struggle and rejecting a negotiated settlementof the Arab-Israeli conflict, Jibril has always been more interested inperfecting the mechanics of armed attacks. Because of its waywardtendency to promote factionalism within the PLO, this group wasexcluded from the PLO in 1983. Although the PFLP-GC has excellentoperational capabilities and an impressive record of actions forso small a group (now fewer than 300 members), it has become amarginal actor within the politics of the Palestinian resistance. Internaldissension led to the splitting off of an anti-Syrian faction, the(second) Palestine Liberation Front, in 1976. Israel has failed inits attempt to assassinate Ahmad Jibril, who continues to serve asthe leader of the group, although his son and presumed heir, JihadAhmad Jibril, was assassinated by a car bomb on 20 May 2002.