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Ali Hassan Salameh

Ali Hassan Salameh (علي حسن سلامة, ) (עלי חסן סלאמה) (died January 22, 1979) was the chief of operations— code name Abu Hassan— for Black September, the organization responsible for the 1972 Munich massacre and other attacks. He was also the founder of Force 17.

Biography

Salameh was born in the Palestinian town of Qula to a wealthy family. He was the son of Shaykh Hassan Salameh, who was killed in action during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, north of Jaffa. He was educated in Germany and is thought to have received his military training in Cairo and Moscow.

He had a very popular appeal among Palestinians young men; his nickname underlined his popularity — the "Red Prince" flaunted his wealth, surrounded by beautiful women and driving sports cars, all while fighting Israel. In 1978, he married Georgina Rizk, a Lebanese celebrity who was Miss Universe 1971. He had children by a previous marriage; reportedly his first wife was a granddaugther of Mohammad Amin al-Husayni.

After it was alleged that he organized what is known as the Munich Massacre during the 1972 Olympic Games, he was hunted by the Israeli Mossad during Operation Wrath of God. In 1973, Mossad killed an innocent Moroccan waiter, Ahmed Bouchiki in what became known as the Lillehammer affair in Norway, mistaking Bouchiki for Salameh.

According to several sources, Salameh served as a secret contact between the PLO and the CIA from 1970 until his death, guaranteeing not assassinating Americans in exchange for financial and political support. He helped protect Americans in Beirut, and his role was to facilitate contacts between the Palestinians and Americans, in hope of obtaining American support for the Palestinians.

Death

Salameh was killed on January 22, 1979 in Beirut by a car bomb planted by Israeli security forces as part of the Operation Wrath of God campaign, in response to the Munich massacre in 1972.Eight other people were also killed in the explosion.

It is believed that Mossad recruited Erika Chambers, a British citizen, to carry out Salameh's assassination. She traveled to the Middle East with a charity supporting Palestinian refugees and arranged a meeting with Salameh in Beirut, where Salameh was being harbored by the Lebanese government. Chambers learned Salameh's daily routine and arranged for a car bomb to be planted on a street which Salameh used. As his convoy drove past, Chambers activated the explosive, killing him and four of his bodyguards. Four bystanders were also killed.

In popular culture

Ali Hassan Salameh was featured in the plot of the Steven Spielberg film Munich as one of the assassination targets. He appears as the character named Jamal Ramlawi in the spy novel Agents of Innocence by David Ignatius, a thinly disguised account of his recruitment by the CIA.

He is briefly mentioned in the Robert Ludlum novel The Janson Directive, where his alleged links to the CIA are cited as an example of shady deals the United States makes.

Bibliography

The Quest for The Red Prince: The Israeli Hunt for Ali Hassen Salameh the PLO leader who masterminded the Olympic Games Massacre. By Michael Bar-Zohar and Eitan Haber. Includes black and white photographic plates which include Yasser Arafat, together with an index. Published by Weidenfeld and Nicolson in 1983 with an ISBN 0-297-78063-8.