Group+5.3+PLO

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PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization) - Group 5.3 Aseel Machi, Jessica Lucas, Andrew Hayes, Albert Howard =====


 * **Table of Contents** ||
 * **1. Introduction to the PLO** ||
 * **1. a. What is the PLO?** ||
 * **1. b. How did it start?** ||
 * **1. c. Who started it? Who is the PLO?** ||
 * **1. d. What is the goal of the PLO?** ||
 * **2. History up to '82** ||
 * **2. a. The Six Day War** ||
 * **2. b. Battle of al-Karama** ||
 * **2. c. New Chair of PLO** ||
 * **2. d. Black September** ||
 * **2. e. The Ten Point Program** ||
 * **3. PLO moves countries, history from '82 - '05** ||
 * **3. a. Movement from Lebanon to Tunis** ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**3. b. Operatin Wooden Leg** ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**3. c. First Intifada** ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**3. d. Oslo Accords** ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**4. Present, where is the PLO today?** ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**4. a. The Palestine Papers** ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**4. b. Present activity (political/social)** ||
 * **Conclusion** ||

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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**1. a. The Palestine Liberation Organization** (PLO) is a political and paramilitary group formed by Palestinians, to take over Israel, land that they believed to be theirs. It was founded in January 1964 by fourteen Arab countries, including Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria at the first Arab Summit meeting in Cairo. The founding Congress for the Palestine Liberation Organization took place in May 1964 in East Jerusalem and the first committee was formed on August 9th, 1964 with Ahamd al-Shukairy as their leader. [1a1] At this committee meeting the Palestine Liberation Organization took on the ideals of "practical resolutions necessary to ward off the existing Zionist danger in the technical and defense fields and to organize the Palestinian people to enable them to carry out their role in liberating their home and determining their destiny." [1a2] This is the meeting that determined how the PLO would be perceived throughout the world. ===== <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**1.b.** The Palestine Liberation Organization supported Pan-Arabism, for all Arabs to live in one state, which was advocated by the president of Egypt at the time, Gamal Abdel Nasser. It was started to re-gain land, for the Palestine people that were living in refugee camps be heard, and to destroy Israel. Before the formation, Palestinians were spread all around the area, from Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. The only main part of Palestine that was still in place was the Gaza Strip. Because there were Palestinians in various countries, they were all under different governments and were not able to do as they pleased. Because of this, many banded together to gain back their land. [1b1] The Prime Minister in Lebanon allowed the PLO to recruit, arm, and train people that were living in the refugee camps to fight against Israel, there were over 400,000 Palestinians living this way. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**1.c.** The Palestine Liberation Organization contains many different groups such as, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine- General Command, al-Fatah, The Palestine's People's Party, Palestine Liberation Front, Arab Liberation Front, Palestine Democratic Union, Palestinian Popular Struggle Front, and Palestine Arab Front, but they are all considered to be part of the PLO. Al-Fatah is the most recognized out of these groups because Yasser Arafat was the leader. It formed in the mid 1950s, before the PLO and had the largest number of people. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine are both known for being the communist groups. The Arab Liberation Front also has ties with the Iraqi Ba'ath Party, which is a political party that includes both Arab socialist and nationalist views.[1c1] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**1. d.** For the first ten years after the organization was created, their goal was the destruction of Israel and the liberation of Palestine. They also wanted to eliminate Zionism, a Jewish political movement, and to have all Palestinians return to Palestine. After little progress, the Palestine Liberation Organization changed their focus toward more political aspects. Another group, the Rejectionist Front was formed because of this and shortly after Yasser Arafat and his group, al- Fatah, became leaders of the PLO. [1d1] After the change in objective and command, the PLO was seen as a less threatening group and more as a group of people that were fighting for real reasons. Overall, the goal of the Palestine Liberation Organization has always been to give the Palestinian people a voice.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Written by: Jessica Lucas
**SOURCES**

[1a1] "A Brief History of the PLO Palestinian Liberation Organization." //DocShare - A New Way to Share Documents Online//. Web. 14 Mar. 2011. <http://www.docshare.com/doc/895/A-brief-history-of-the-PLO-Palestinian-Libera>. [1a2] What is the PLO? <span style="background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; color: black; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Rashid Hamid //Journal of Palestine Studies// <span style="background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; color: black; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Vol. 4, No. 4 (Summer, 1975), pp. 90-109 <span style="background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; color: black; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Published by: <span style="background-clip: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; color: blue; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">[|University of California Press] on behalf of the <span style="background-clip: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; color: blue; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">[|Institute for Palestine Studies] <span style="background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; color: black; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2535603 [1b1] What is the PLO? <span style="background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; color: black; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Rashid Hamid //Journal of Palestine Studies// <span style="background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; color: black; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Vol. 4, No. 4 (Summer, 1975), pp. 90-109 <span style="background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; color: black; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Published by: <span style="background-clip: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; color: blue; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">[|University of California Press] on behalf of the <span style="background-clip: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; color: blue; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">[|Institute for Palestine Studies] <span style="background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-origin: initial; color: black; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2535603 [1c and d] "Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)." //Jewish Virtual Library - Homepage//. 2011. Web. 13 Mar. 2011. <span style="background-clip: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">[].

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**2. a.** The **Six Day War** lasted from June 5 to June 10 of 1967. This war was started by Israel, when they launched a surprise air attack on Egypt. In just six days after the war began Israel took full control of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and Sinai Peninsula (1). All were considered to be under the Arab control before the war. This event sparked the PLO involvement even more into the Israel conflict.



<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**2. b. Battle of al-Karama March 21, 1968-** Palestinian fighters, mostly from the PLO fought with the Jordanian Army against Israeli Army. Yasser Arafat before becoming chairman of the PLO found out about a planned attack Israel was planning in Jordan. On March 21st the Jordanian army along with the Palestine Liberation Army attacked Israeli troops (3). This resulted in big casualties and losses for the Israeli Army. Most importantly this was the first time the Israeli Army asked for a ceasefire in any Arab-Israel war. This resulted in many young Palestinian men joining the PLO’s guerilla wings.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**2. c. Yasser Arafat becomes Chairman of the PLO, February 14th 1969-** Arafat was in charge of the PLO until the early 2000s. He was the leader for most of the Arab-Israeli conflicts involving Palestine from when he was appointed until his death in 2004 (1). Arafat is considered one of the key players in the Arab-Israeli conflict.



<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**2. d. Black September, 1970:** This was a clash in the month of September 1970, which was between King Hussein of Jordan and Palestinian organizations, including the PLO. King Hussein feared an independent West Bank under the PLO’s administration would threaten his country (4). There were many attempts to assassinate the King by Palestinian forces in the early days of September. Hijackings of planes occurred to assassinate King Hussein; however none of these attempts were successful. On September 15th the Jordanian army responded with tanks attacking the headquarters of Palestinian Organizations in Amman (1). The PLO and other organizations retaliated in Amman against the Jordanian Army. Hussein and Arafat attended the meeting of leaders of Arab countries on September 27th (1). Under heavy pressure from outside Arab countries, they both signed an agreement that acknowledged the right of the Palestinian organizations to operate in Jordan, but which required them to leave the cities and stay in the fronts. Casualties from Black September range from 3,000-10,000 deaths (4).

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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">(Video Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DShud_iyX9s, Aseel Machi) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**2. e. June 8th, 1974:** The **Palestine National Counci**l set out the **Ten Point Program** to establish peace for the Palestinian people. The Ten Points are listed below: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">“1. To reaffirm the [|Palestine Liberation Organization]’s previous attitude to [|Resolution 242], which obliterates the national right of our people and deals with the cause of our people as a problem of refugees. The Council therefore refuses to have anything to do with this resolution at any level, Arab or international, including the [|Geneva Conference]. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">2. The [|Palestine Liberation Organization] will employ all means, and first and foremost armed struggle, to liberate Palestinian territory and to establish the independent combatant national authority for the people over every part of Palestinian territory that is liberated. This will require further changes being effected in the balance of power in favor of our people and their struggle. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">3. The Liberation Organization will struggle against any proposal for a Palestinian entity the price of which is recognition, peace, secure frontiers, renunciation of national rights, and the deprival of our people of their right to return and their right to self-determination on the soil of their homeland. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">4. Any step taken towards liberation is a step towards the realization of the Liberation Organization’s strategy of establishing the democratic Palestinian State specified in the resolutions of the previous Palestinian National Councils. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">5. Struggle along with the Jordanian national forces to establish a Jordanian-Palestinian national front whose aim will be to set up in [|Jordan] a democratic national authority in close contact with the Palestinian entity that is established through the struggle. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">6. The Liberation Organization will struggle to establish unity in struggle between the two peoples and between all the forces of the Arab liberation movement that are in agreement on this program. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">7. In the light of this program, the Liberation Organization will struggle to strengthen national unity and to raise it to the level where it will be able to perform its national duties and tasks. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">8. Once it is established, the Palestinian national authority will strive to achieve a union of the confrontation countries, with the aim of completing the liberation of all Palestinian territory, and as a step along the road to comprehensive Arab unity. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">9. The Liberation Organization will strive to strengthen its solidarity with the socialist countries, and with the forces of liberation and progress throughout the world, with the aim of frustrating all the schemes of [|Zionism], reaction and imperialism. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">10. In light of this program, the leadership of the revolution will determine the tactics which will serve and make possible the realization of the objectives.” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">This program was a guideline for the future of the state of Palestine under the PLO.  <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">PLO." (2)

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Sources: **
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">1. "Timeline: History of a Revolution - PLO: History of a Revolution - Al Jazeera English." //AJE - Al Jazeera English//. Aug. 2009. Web. 10 Mar. 2011. []. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">2. "The Ten-Point Program - Israel & Judaism Studies." //Israel & Judaism Studies - The Education Website of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies - Israel & Judaism Studies//. Web. 10 Mar. 2011. []. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">3. "Palestinian Political Parties & Organizations." //Middle East: MidEastWeb//. Web. 8 Mar. 2011. []. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">4. "Palestinian Biography." //Palestine - Home of History//. Web. 8 Mar. 2011. [].

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**4. a. Palestine Papers by Aseel Machi** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;"> Today, in 2011, the PLO is known as a key representative of Palestinian people. However, a new controversy was unleashed recently, one that hurt the image of the PLO and their significance to the people of Palestine. Popular Middle Eastern news resource, Al Jazeera news, leaked papers known as the "Palestine Papers". One of many controversies in these papers is the claimed revelation that the actions of the PLO in the late 1980's was actually not representative of the people's wants at all. The "Palestine Papers" revealed a number of negotiations between political leaders, including Yasser Arafat and Israeli leaders, that put the PLO in a negative light; where at times, the leaders were compromising the land of the Palestinians. The "Palestine Papers" claimed that negotiations between leaders were held to benefit the Israeli and Jewish population, where the Palestinians would be giving up more land area than they wanted to, all with approval of Yasser Arafat and the PLO, the papers claimed [ <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">**Gulf News: PLO blasts Al Jazeera and Qatar, says leaks aim to attack organisation's reputation Nasouh Nazzal. Gulf News. Dubai: Jan 25, 2011]**. However, representatives of the PLO rebuke much of the content of the papers, insisting that Al Jazeera had a secret agenda behind the papers. Both claims have yet to be confirmed, however Al Jazeera insists their private documents are legitimate.

media type="youtube" key="yQEnVIJmHvM" height="390" width="640" (Video Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQEnVIJmHvM, Aseel Machi) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Today the PLO is the lead negotiator between the Palestinian people, the Palestine government and the Israeli government. A part of the PLO, known as the Negotiation Affairs Department, deals with the peace-making process between Israel and Palestine directly. Some recent action includes Permanent Status negotiations contributed by varying governments to bring Israel and Palestine together in peace, these are actions taken upon the Negotiation Affairs Department of the PLO [**http://www.nad-plo.org/mainphp?view+na**v_about-us]. Regarding a U.S. standpoint on the PLO, the U.S. Department of State has granted "certain concessions to the PLO" that will allow the PLO will be able to portray itself on a more positive mission; one of the included permissions is to fly the flag of Palestine. However, this was not decided without another controversy. A sub group of the U.S. House of Representatives known as the Ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued a statement against this decision by the U.S. Department of State. **[Ros-Lehtinen: Unrepentant, Unchanged PLO Deserves No U.S. Concessions; House Foreign Affairs - Republican Committee News Release** **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 23px;">[|Congressional Documents and Publications]. Lanham: [|Jul 23, 2010].] **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">4. b. Present, where is the PLO today? by Aseel Machi **



<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">In conclusion, the PLO is still a key leader in politics for Palestine today, and is still looked to as the representative of the peoples' wants, even through some of the unfortunate claims. The PLO has a rough history, from Black September to the Battle of al-Karama, it is only history itself that can provide a input for the future of the PLO. One thing is for certain, the main goal of the PLO; to liberate Palestine and free the people has been and always be a primary goal of the people and the PLO.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Conclusion, by Aseel Machi **



<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Sources used for background information, and not directly quoted include:
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">. [|Domes]. Milwaukee: [|Fall 2008]. Vol. 17, Iss. 2; pg. 134, 3 pgs <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">The Palestinian Liberation Organisation: people, power, and politics <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 23px;">By Helena Cobban