During the week of the anniversary of the death of PLO arch-terrorist Abu Jihad, the Palestinian Authority held events and broadcast TV programs celebrating him and his terror attacks.
The programs as well as newspaper articles glorifying Abu Jihad were monitored and translated by the Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) research organization, which presented them on its website.
Abu Jihad was the name by which the former head of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s military wing, Khalil al-Wazir, was known. 125 Israeli civilians and soldiers were killed in terror attacks he planned and directed. Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement a few months ago exposed a video which shows Abu Jihad plotting to kill then-Cabinet minister Ariel Sharon.
WAFA, the official PA news agency, glorified his killing of Israelis and his attacks on civilian targets in an article that also appeared in the official PA daily, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida on April 16.
“Abu Jihad was killed by the Israeli Mossad in Tunisia on April 16, 1988… and was crowned the Prince of the Martyrs of Palestine… Among the military operations planned by Abu Jihad: the explosion at the Zohar reservoir in 1955; the operation to blow up the Israeli National Water Carrier in 1965; the operation at the Savoy Hotel in Tel Aviv, which killed 10 Israelis, in 1975; the blowing up of a truck bomb in Jerusalem in 1975; the killing of Albert Levi, the senior sapper, and his assistant, in Nablus in 1976; the Dalal Mughrabi operation (i.e., bus hijacking), in which more than 37 Israelis were killed, in 1978; the shelling of the Eilat Port in 1979; the Katyusha fire on the northern settlements [in Israel] in 1981…”
WAFA lauded Abu Jihad for attacking numerous civilian targets and depicted the killing of civilians and soldiers as positive accomplishments. Because of his successful record of terror, said the report, the anniversary of Abu Jihad’s death is celebrated.
PMW also noted that sporting events portraying him as a hero and role model for youth were held throughout the anniversary period, as reported in the official PA daily on April 12.
“The anniversary of the Martyrdom-death of our people’s legendary leader, Khalil Al-Wazir, Abu Jihad, is approaching, and in its honor the sports organizations in Palestine are organizing many tournaments in diverse branches of sports… the knights of the Ansar Al-Quds club have commemorated this anniversary every year, and continue to do so. This year they will be holding their 18th tournament.”
Other sporting events held in Abu Jihad’s name included a table-tennis championship, a judo tournament, a boxing tournament and a marathon.
The PA TV aired parts of a long documentary program, including old films showing Abu Jihad planning large scale terror attacks against Israel. The film was produced in 2010 under the auspices and supervision of Fatah MP Ashraf Jum’a.
In the film Abu Jihad is heard saying, “After we strike the [Israeli] headquarters, Allah willing, we will close off the streets [of Tel Aviv]. On one street, for example, we will hold 500 people [hostage]. 500 people at once. Can anyone bargain over them? No one, without exception, is allowed to go there unless he sets up the fuse and the explosives. At any moment, he can blow up everyone. Blow up their building, or the whole thing, no matter how many people are there. Our dagger will be a poisoned dagger in our enemy’s heart, and we will take down as many as possible. We want to land on enemy territory (Israel) and to be like a single fortress. When we get there, Allah willing, we will begin to fire, to fire on our enemy. We will dig in his throat and heart with the massacres that we spoke about. We want to turn the Tel Aviv day black. We want to turn the Tel Aviv day into destruction, Allah willing. We will turn the Tel Aviv day so it will be remembered in the history of Tel Aviv as black Saturday, black Sunday. Tel Aviv will be closed that whole day with blood and destruction.”
A second Abu Jihad film was also broadcast on PA TV on April 16.
