West Germany cooperated with the Palestinian Black September terrorist group following the attack at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich in which 11 Israeli athletes were killed by Black September terrorists, the German magazine Der Spiegel reported on Sunday. According to the report, the West German government held covert contacts with Black September in order to avoid future attacks on German soil by the Palestinian terrorist group. Several months after the Munich massacre, then-West German Foreign Minister Walter Scheel reportedly met with Black September leaders in an effort to build trust with the group. West German diplomat Walter George Novak also participated in the contacts and met with Abu Yusuf (Yusuf Najjar). A week after that meeting, Najjar was killed in Beirut by Israeli commandos during Operation Spring of Youth. West German officials later met with Ali Hassan Salameh, known as the "Red Prince" and thought to be the mastermind behind the Munich attack, as well as Amin Hindi, who later became an official in the Palestinian Authority. West German officials requested that no further attacks be carried out in Germany by Black September. In return, Black September sought political recognition for the Palestine Liberation Organization. Following the contacts, the West German government decided to suspend the criminal investigation of the perpetrators of the Munich attack. Several weeks later, West German Foreign Ministry official Paul Frank announced the closure of the investigation. Five years after the Munich attack, the French government asked West German officials if they wanted the extradition of Abu Daoud, one of the planners of the Munich attack. The West Germans declined to respond, as part of the passive policy that the country had adopted toward the PLO and Palestinian terrorism. The Der Spiegel report also revealed the sympathy held by West German officials for the Palestinian cause. For example, West German Foreign Ministry correspondence referred to the Munich attack as "an act of resistance." Ilana Romano, the widow of slain Israeli athlete Yossef Romano, said that she was not surprised by the Der Spiegel report. "It is sad and hurtful that after all the rejections we have faced, only now people know this," Romano said. "These things have been clear to us over the years. We've been picking through these materials for 40 years. The only difference is that now they are written in black and white."
'West Germany worked with Black September after Munich Massacre'
West German officials held covert contacts with Black September leaders in order to avoid future attacks on German soil, Der Spiegel reports • After the talks, West Germany closed criminal probe of Munich attack.
Load more...