Muhammad Zaidan (also known as Abu Abbas and Muhammad Abbas) (December 10, 1948 – March 8, 2004) was a Palestinian terrorist. The founder and leader of a paramilitary terrorist group the Palestine Liberation Front, his notoriety in the West is mostly due to the murder of Leon Klinghoffer, an elderly, innocent, wheelchair-bound that happened to be Jewish-American, who was shot dead and thrown overboard, during the 1985 hijacking of the Italian cruise ship the Achille Lauro, which Zaidan planned and instigated. i dont know if this is copyrighted but it is definitely fair use This work is copyrighted. ... Jump to: navigation, search December 10 is the 344th day (345th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1948 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Jump to: navigation, search March 8 is the 67th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (68th in Leap years). ... Jump to: navigation, search 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search ‹The template below has been proposed for deletion. ... Look up terrorist in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Jump to: navigation, search A paramilitary organization is a group of civilians trained and organized in a military fashion. ... Look up terrorist in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The term group can refer to several concepts: Look up Group on Wiktionary, the free dictionary In music, a group is another term for band or other musical ensemble. ... The Palestine Liberation Front (PLF) was founded to create a Palestinian state; it was headquartered first in Lebanon, and later in Tunisia. ... Leon Klinghoffer (September 24, 1916–October 8, 1985) was a retired appliance manufacturer of New York who was disabled and used a wheelchair for mobility. ... Jump to: navigation, search The word Jew (Hebrew: יהודי) is used in many ways, but generally refers to a follower of Judaism, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity; and often a combination of these attributes. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1985 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search MV Pride of Aloha docked in Port of Nāwiliwili, Kaua‘i in the Hawaiian Islands A cruise ship, or less commonly cruise liner or luxury liner, is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the amenities of the ship are... The Willem Ruys The Achille Lauro The Achille Lauro was a passenger liner, most remembered for its 1985 hijacking. ...

Zaidan joined the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine General Command under Ahmed Jibril in 1968. In 1977, major disagreements arose between the PFLP-GC, the PLO, and other Palestinian factions based in Lebanon. Zaidan, who opposed Syrian involvement in the Lebanese war, left the PFLP and created the PLF, which eventually split into three separate factions (and then later re-merged). Zaidan's faction of the PLF moved its headquarters to Tunisia. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command is a left-wing Palestinian nationalist organization. ... Ahmed Jibril (b. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1968 was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Jump to: navigation, search 1977 was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1977 calendar). ... The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (Arabic Munazzamat al-Tahrir Filastiniyyah منظمة تحرير فلسطينية ) is a political and paramilitary organization of Palestinian Arabs dedicated to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state to consist of the area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, with an intent to destroy Israel. ...

Since its inception in 1977, the PLF has always aligned itself with the Palestine Liberation Organization and has received support from both the PLO and Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement. Unlike the PFLP-GC, the PLF has supported peace negotiations between Palestine and Israel. Zaidan was elected to the executive council of the PLO in 1984 and represented the Palestinian National Council in 1989 during peace negotiations with Israel. Although Zaidan was wanted by Israel for his involvement in guerrilla attacks against Israel (including terrorist attacks on civilians) throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Israel allowed him to travel freely in the Gaza Strip throughout the 1990s because he supported the peace negotiations. Jump to: navigation, search 1977 was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1977 calendar). ... The Palestine Liberation Front (PLF) was founded to create a Palestinian state; it was headquartered first in Lebanon, and later in Tunisia. ... Jump to: navigation, search The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (Arabic: Munazzamat al-Tahrir al-Filastiniyyah â–¶(?) منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية ) is a political and paramilitary organization of Palestinians dedicated to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in the region historically known as Palestine. ... Jump to: navigation, search Yasser Arafat (Arabic: ياسر عرفات‎) (August 4 or August 24, 1929 – November 11, 2004), born Muhammad `Abd ar-Rauf al-Qudwa al-Husayni (محمد عبد الرؤوف القدوة الحسيني) and also known as Abu `Ammar (ابو عمّار), was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (1969–2004); President of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) (1993... Jump to: navigation, search The Fatah official emblem shows two fists holding rifles and a hand grenade superimposed on a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ... The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command is a left-wing Palestinian nationalist organization. ... The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (Arabic Munazzamat al-Tahrir Filastiniyyah منظمة تحرير فلسطينية ) is a political and paramilitary organization of Palestinian Arabs dedicated to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state to consist of the area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, with an intent to destroy Israel. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1984 is a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search The term terrorism is largely synonymous with political violence, and refers to a strategy of using coordinated attacks that typically fall outside the time, manner of conduct, and place commonly understood as representing the bounds of conventional warfare. ... A civilian is a person who is not a member of a military. ... Jump to: navigation, search // Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ... Jump to: navigation, search // Events and trends The 1990s are generally classified as having moved slightly away from the more conservative 1980s, but otherwise retaining the same mindset. ... Jump to: navigation, search // Events and trends The 1990s are generally classified as having moved slightly away from the more conservative 1980s, but otherwise retaining the same mindset. ...

Throughout the 1980s, the PLF launched attacks on both civilian and military targets in the north of Israel. After the hijacking of the Achille Lauro, under immense political pressure from the United States and Italy, Tunisia expelled Zaidan from the country. He fled to Iraq, where Saddam Hussein sheltered him from extradition to Italy, and commanded the PLF from Baghdad until Saddam was deposed by coalition forces in 2003. Jump to: navigation, search // Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ... A civilian is a person who is not a member of a military. ... Jump to: navigation, search Saddam Hussein Wikinews has news related to this article: Saddam Hussein Saddām Hussein ʻAbd al-Majīd al-Tikrīti, sometimes spelled Husayn or Hussain; (Arabic صدام حسين عبد المجيد التكريتي; born April 28, 1937 ) was President of Iraq from 1979 until his removal and capture during the 2003 invasion... Extradition is a formal process by which a criminal suspect held by one government is handed over to another government for trial or, if the suspect has already been tried and found guilty, to serve his or her sentence. ... Jump to: navigation, search Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad Baghdad (Arabic: ) is the capital of Iraq and the Baghdad Province. ... Jump to: navigation, search 2003 (MMIII) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Italy (whose government had previously let Abu Abbas leave the country without being arrested) sentenced Zaidan in absentia to five terms of life imprisonment for his role in the Achille Lauro hijacking, and he was also wanted in the United States for crimes including terrorism, piracy, and murder. The killing of an unarmed, eldery man and hijacking of a civilian ship could also be considered a war crime. In 1996, he made an apology for the hijacking and murder and advocated peace talks between Palestininans and Israel; the apology was rejected by the United States government and Klinghoffer's family, who insisted he be brought to justice. Jump to: navigation, search The term terrorism is largely synonymous with political violence, and refers to a strategy of using coordinated attacks that typically fall outside the time, manner of conduct, and place commonly understood as representing the bounds of conventional warfare. ... Copyright infringement is the unauthorized use of copyrighted material in a manner that violates one of the copyright owners exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works that build upon it. ... Jump to: navigation, search A war crime is a punishable offense, under international (criminal) law, for violations of the law of war by any person or persons, military or civilian. ... Jump to: navigation, search 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... The Apology is Platos version of the speech given by Socrates as he defends himself against the charges of being a man who corrupted the young, did not believe in the gods, and created new deities. ...

On April 15, 2003, Zaidan was captured by American forces in Iraq while attempting to flee from Baghdad to Syria. Italy subsequently requested his extradition. The Pentagon reported on March 9, 2004 that Zaidan had died the previous day, of natural causes, while in US custody. The PLF accused the Americans of assassinating their leader. The US authorities agreed to give Abbas' body to the Red Cross for burial in the Ramallah on the Palestinian West Bank. However, his burial there was blocked by the Israeli authorities. Instead he will be buried in Syria. Jump to: navigation, search April 15 is the 105th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (106th in leap years). ... Jump to: navigation, search 2003 (MMIII) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad Baghdad (Arabic: ) is the capital of Iraq and the Baghdad Province. ... Jump to: navigation, search March 9 is the 68th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (69th in Leap years). ... Jump to: navigation, search 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Natural Causes is a Sydney hip-hop collective made up of MCs Phat Chance, Physics and Oxford Street. ...

External links

• 2003-Apr-15 CNN article about the arrest of Abbas
• PRISONERS: '85 Hijacker Is Captured in Baghdad, The New York Times, April 16, 2003
• H2G2 article about the hi-jacking of the Achille Lauro