Wikipedia

George Habash

George Habash(Arabic:جورج حبش,romanized:Jūrj Ḥabash;1 August 1926 – 26 January 2008) was a Palestinian politician and physician who founded theMarxist–LeninistPopular Front for the Liberation of Palestine(PFLP).[3][4]

George Habash
جورج حبش
General Secretary of thePopular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
In office
December 1967 – July 2000
Succeeded byAbu Ali Mustafa
Personal details
Born(1926-08-01)1 August 1926[1][2]
Lydda,Mandatory Palestine
Died26 January 2008(2008-01-26)(aged 81)
Amman,Jordan
NationalityPalestinian
Political partyPopular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
Other political
affiliations		Arab Nationalist Movement(1951–1967)
Alma materAmerican University of Beirut
Religious backgroundGreek OrthodoxChristian

Habash was born inLydda,Mandatory Palestinein 1926. In 1948, while a medical student at theAmerican University of Beirut,he went to his home town of Lydda during the1948 Arab–Israeli War,when the city's Arab Palestinian population including his family were driven out in what became known as theLydda Death Marchthat led to the death of his sister.[5]In 1951, after graduating first in his class from medical school, Habash worked in Palestinian refugee camps in Jordan and ran a clinic in Amman. He later relocated to Syria and Lebanon.

In 1967, after being sidelined in thePalestine Liberation OrganizationbyYasser Arafat,he founded the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a leftist movement which opposes the existence of Israel and advocates for asingle democratic and secular stateinthe entire region.In the 1970Dawson's Field hijackings,Habash masterminded the hijackings of four Western airliners to Jordan, which led to theBlack Septemberconflict, and his subsequent exile to Lebanon. He remained opposed to a two-state solution even after the PLO signed theOslo Peace Accordsin 1993. He resigned as secretary general of the PFLP due to ill health in 2000, and died after a heart attack in 2008.

He was also known by hiskunyaas "Al-Hakim"(Arabic:الحكيم,romanized:Al-Ḥakīm,lit. 'The Wise Man'or'The Doctor').

Early life

Habash received an undergraduate degree in medicine from theAmerican University of Beirut,1951.

Habash was born in Lydda (today'sLod) to aGreek Orthodox ChristianPalestinian family in 1926.[6][7]As a child, he sang in the church choir.[8]In 1948, 19-year-old Habash, a medical student at theAmerican University of Beirut,went to his home town of Lydda during the1948 Arab–Israeli Warto help his family. While he was there, theIsrael Defense Forcesattacked the city and as a result, most of its civilian population was forced to leave in what became known as theLydda Death March.They marched for three days without food or water until they reached theArabarmies' front lines, which led to his sister's death. Habash and his remaining family becamerefugeesand were not allowed to return home. He later finished his education at the AUB and graduated in 1951.[5]

Political thinkers who were influences on Habash at this period includedConstantin Zureiq,whose lectures at AUB on 'Arab nationalism and the Zionist danger' in the late 1940s and early 1950s Habash had attended, andSati' al-Husrian Arab Muslim intellectual who emphasized national cohesiveness, territorial patriotism, and loyalty to the state, and gave priority to Arab unity over Islamic unity.[9]

In 1951, after graduating first in his class from medical school, Habash worked in refugee camps in Jordan and ran a clinic withWadie Haddadin Amman. He firmly believed that the state of Israel should be ended by all possible means, including political violence.[10]In an effort to recruit theArab worldto this cause, Habash founded theArab Nationalist Movement(ANM) in 1951 and aligned the organization withGamal Abdel Nasser'sArab nationalistideology.

He was implicated in the 1957 coup attempt in Jordan, which had originated among Palestinian members of the National Guard. Habash was convicted in absentia, after having gone underground whenHussein of Jordanproclaimed martial law and banned all political parties. In 1958 he fled toSyria(then part of theUnited Arab Republic), but was forced to return toBeirutin 1961 by the tumultuous breakup of the UAR.

Habash was a leading member of thePalestine Liberation Organizationuntil 1967 when he was sidelined byFatahleaderYasser Arafat,with whom he had a complex relationship described as a mix of "camaraderie and rivalry" and "a love-hate relationship".[11][1]In response, Habash founded thePopular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

In 1964 he began reorganizing the ANM, regrouping the Palestinian members of the organization into a "regional command." After theSix-Day Warin 1967, disillusion with Nasser became widespread. This prompted the foundation, led by Habash, of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) as a front of several Palestinian factions, like the "heroes of return" and "Palestinian Liberation Front", along with the ANM on 11 December, when he also became its first secretary-general. Habash was arrested byAbd al-Karim al-Jundiand briefly imprisoned inSyriaunder the accusation of plotting to overthrow the Baathist ruling party in 1968 but escaped with the help ofWadie Haddadwho with four others extracted Habash from a maximum security prison whilst disguised asmilitary police.[12]In the same year, he also came into conflict[how?]with long-time ally Wadie Haddad, but both remained in the PFLP.

At a 1969 congress, the PFLP re-designated itself aMarxist–Leninistmovement and has remained aCommunistorganization ever since. Its pan-Arab leanings have been diminished since the ANM days, but popular support for a united Arab front has remained, especially in regard to Israeli and western political pressures. It holds a firm position regarding Israel, demanding its complete eradication as a racist state through military struggle and promotes aone-state solution(one secular, democratic, non-denominational state).[citation needed]

Yasser Arafat,Mahmoud Darwish& George Habash inSyria

The 1969 congress also saw an ultra-leftist faction underNayef HawatmehandYasser Abd Rabbosplit off as the Popular Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PDFLP), later to become theDemocratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine(DFLP). During Habash's time as secretary-general, the PFLP became known as one of the most radical and militant Palestinian factions and gained world notoriety after a string ofaircraft hijackingsand attacks against Israel affiliated companies as well as Israeli ambassadors in Europe mostly planned by Haddad. The PFLP's pioneering of modern international terror operations brought the group, and the Palestinian issue, onto newspaper front pages worldwide, but it also provoked intense criticism from other parts of the Palestine Liberation Organization. In 1970, Habash was evicted from Jordan due to the key role of the Popular Front in theBlack September clashes.In 1974, thePalestinian National Counciladopted a resolution recognizing a two-state solution to theIsraeli–Palestinian conflict[citation needed]and Habash, who opposed this, formed theRejectionist Frontfrom several other opposition parties.

Habash aligned the PFLP with the PLO and theLebanese National Movement,but stayed neutral during theLebanese Civil Warin the late 1970s. After a stroke in 1980, when he was living inDamascus,his health declined and other PFLP members rose to the top.

After the Oslo Agreements, Habash formed another opposition alliance of Rejectionists, including Islamist organizations such asHamasand theIslamic Jihad Movement in Palestine,that became prominent during theFirst Intifada.In 2000, he resigned from his leadership post of the PFLP due to poor health and was succeeded byAbu Ali Mustafa.He continued to be an activist for the group until 2008 when he died of a heart attack inAmman.

Black September

The PFLP ignored tensions with the mainstream leadership ofYasser Arafat'sFatahfaction, and instead focused on bringing about revolutionary change in Jordan. Habash expressed the opinion that what proceeded was not "only military but also psychological warfare" and one had to "hold the Israelis under permanent pressure".[13]

In the 1970Dawson's Field hijackings,Habash masterminded the hijackings of four Western airliners over the United States, Europe, the Far East and the Persian Gulf. The aircraft were forced to fly to a World War II airfield in Jordan, the passengers and crews were disembarked and the planes were then blown up.

The Dawson's Field hijackings were instrumental in provoking theBlack Septembercrackdown, which came close to destroying the PLO. The hijackings ledHussein of Jordanof Jordan to carry out a major offensive against militant strongholds in his kingdom resulting in the deaths of thousands of Palestinians.[14]In autumn 1970, Habash visited Beijing. After Black September, the PLOfedayeenrelocated to Lebanon.

In 1972, Habash experienced failing health and gradually began to lose influence within the organization. ThePalestinian National Council's (PNC) adoption of a resolution viewed by the PFLP as atwo-state solutionin 1974, prompted Habash to lead his organization out of active participation in the PLO and to join the Iraqi-backedRejectionist Front.Only in 1977 would the PFLP opt to rejoin, as the Palestinian factions rallied their forces in opposition toAnwar Sadat's overtures towards Israel, pro-U.S. policies and fragmentation of the Arab world. During the Lebanese Civil War that broke out in 1975, PFLP forces were decimated in the battle against Syria. Later, the PFLP would draw close to Syria, as Syria's government shifted, but PFLP involvement in the Lebanese war remained strong until the US-negotiated evacuation of PLO units from Beirut in 1982 and continued on a smaller scale after that.

Oslo Agreements

After the signing of theOslo Peace Accordsin 1993, Habash and the PFLP again broke completely with Arafat, accusing him of selling out the Palestinian revolution. The group set up an anti-Arafat and anti-Oslo alliance in Damascus, for the first time joined by non-PLOIslamistgroups such asHamasand thePalestinian Islamic Jihad,which had grown to prominence during theFirst Intifada.After finding the position sterile, with Palestinian political dynamics playing out on theWest BankandGazaareas of thePalestinian National Authority(PNA), Habash carefully sought to repair ties to Arafat, and gain a hold in post-Oslo politics without compromising PFLP principles. However, there is no indication that he ever accepted the two-state solution. This balancing act could not save the PFLP from being eclipsed by the militant Islamist factions on the one hand, and the resource-rich Fatah with its PNA patronage network on the other. The significance of the PFLP in Palestinian politics has diminished considerably since the mid-90s. The PFLP participated in thePalestinian legislative elections of 2006as Ahmad Sa'adat won 4.2% of the popular vote.

In the late 1990s, Habash's medical condition worsened. In 2000 he resigned from the post as secretary-general, citing health reasons. He was succeeded as head of the PFLP byAbu Ali Mustafawho was assassinated by Israel during theSecond Intifada.Habash went on to set up a PFLP-affiliated research center, but he remained active in the PFLP's internal politics. Until his death he was still popular among many Palestinians, who appreciate his revolutionary ideology, his determination and principles, the rejection of the Oslo Agreements and his intellectual style.

Death

George Habash Square,Ramallah

Habash died on 26 January 2008, at the age of 81 of a heart attack in the Jordan Hospital, Amman, where Habash was a cancer patient.[15]ThePresident of the Palestinian National Authority,Mahmoud Abbascalled for three days of national mourning.[10]Habash was buried in a suburban cemetery of Amman with the obsequies of theEastern Orthodox Church.[16]Abbas said Habash was a "historic leader" and called for Palestinian flags to be flown half-mast. Abdel Raheem Mallouh, PFLP deputy secretary-general, called Habash a "distinguished leader... who struggled for more than 60 years without a stop for the rights and the interests of his people".[10]Hamasleader and dismissed Palestinian Prime MinisterIsmail Haniyehsent his condolences, saying Habash "spent his life defending Palestine".[16]

References

  1. ^abAndoni, Lamis (13 July 2009)."Habash: The bearer of the dream".Al Jazeera.Retrieved6 July2022.
  2. ^ذكرى ميلاد حكيمُ الثورة وضميرُها.. القائد المؤسّس جورج حبش[The Anniversary of the Birth of the Hakim of the Revolution and its Consciousness, the Founding Leader George Habash].Al-Hadaf(in Arabic). 1 August 2023.Archivedfrom the original on 1 August 2023.
  3. ^Hirst, David (27 January 2008)."George Habash".The Guardian.Retrieved27 June2024.
  4. ^"George Habash: A Profile From the Archives".Jadaliyyaجدلية.
  5. ^abKazziha, Walid (1975).Revolutionary Transformation in the Arab World: Habash and his Comrades from Nationalism to Marxism.pp. 17–18.
  6. ^"Palestine Who's Who (C-M)".Arab Gateway.Archived fromthe originalon 21 April 2007.
  7. ^Reich, Bernard (1990).Political Leaders of the Contemporary Middle East and North Africa: A Biographical Dictionary.Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 528.ISBN978-0-313-26213-5.
  8. ^Macleod, Scott (28 January 2008)."Terrorism's Christian Godfather".Time.Archived fromthe originalon 29 January 2008.
  9. ^Cubert, Harold (1997).The PFLP's Changing Role in the Middle East.p. 30.
  10. ^abc"Palestinian radical founder dies".BBC News.26 January 2008.Retrieved27 June2024.
  11. ^Levy, Gideon(15 April 2018)."This Biography Makes It Clear: The Founder of the Palestinian Popular Front Was Right".Haaretz.Retrieved6 July2022.
  12. ^Yallop, David A.(1993).Tracking the Jackal: the search for Carlos, the world's most wanted man(1st U.S. ed.). New York: Random House. p. 37.ISBN0-679-42559-4.OCLC27974606.
  13. ^‘'Aziya i Afrika segodnya'’– cited in edition‘'Välispanoraam 1972'’,Tallinn, 1973, lk 129 (‘'Foreign Panorama 1972'’)
  14. ^Liphshiz, Cnaan (27 January 2008)."Tales of Black September".Haaretz.Retrieved27 June2024.
  15. ^Edmund L. Andrews; John Kifner (27 January 2008)."George Habash, Palestinian Terrorism Tactician, Dies at 82".The New York Times.Retrieved27 June2024.
  16. ^ab"PFLP founder George Habash dies".Al Jazeera. 28 January 2008.Retrieved27 June2024.
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