| INTERNATIONAL TERRORIST SYMBOLS DATABASE |
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| Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine
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Description: A black map of Israel and the territories, framed by two olive branches, is superimposed on a five-pointed red star inside a black-bordered circle. Arabic script running along the lower half of the circle says "The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine."
Explanation: The five-pointed red star refers to the group's Marxist-Leninism (the DFLP was supported by both the Soviet Union and Cuba before the fall of Communism). The map within the star speaks to the DFLP's intention to overthrow Israel through a revolution of working class Palestinians. The olive branches which frame the map represent victory.
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| Name Variations | Overview | Focus of Operations | Major Attacks | Leaders | Ideology | Goals | Methods | Sponsors | U.S.- Related Activities | |
Name Variations
The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP)
Overview
Formed in 1969 by Naif Hawatmah as an offshoot of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the DFLP holds that Palestinian national goals can be achieved only through a revolution of the lower classes. Unlike most other Palestinian terrorist organizations, the DFLP does not call for expulsion of Jews from the region; it advocates instead the creation of a bi-national democratic state west of the Jordan River. It has carried out terrorist attacks against Israelis to achieve this objective, however, including a siege on a school in Maalot that killed 27 people, including 21 schoolchildren held as hostages. While critical of the PLO's purported moderation, the DFLP largely refrained from terrorist attacks during the 1990s; Hawatmah even shook the hand of Israeli President Ezer Weizmann at the funeral of Jordan's King Hussein in 1999. During the second Intifada, however, the group resumed its terrorist attacks against Israelis.
Focus of Operations
West Bank, Gaza, Israel, Syria, Lebanon
Major Attacks
- June 20, 2002: Attack on West Bank settlement of Itamar:
5 killed, 4 wounded.
- May 15, 1974: Attack on Israeli schoolhouse in Maalot:
27 people killed, including 21 school children, 134 injured.
Leaders
- Ibrahim Abu Hijleh (arrested by Israel in 2002)
- Naif Hawatmah (in Amman)
Ideology
Formerly Communism, but primarily secular and nationalist since the fall of the Soviet Union.
Methods
Paramilitary operations, border raids against civilian and military targets.
Goals
Creation of a Palestinian state by popular uprising.
Sponsors
Syria
U.S.-Related Activities
None known
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