258:, Greece on December 26, 1968. The two dashed out of the airport transit lounge just as the Israeli plane, parked 200 yards (180 m) away, was preparing to take off. The plane had flown in earlier from Tel Aviv. Mohammad fired at the plane for more than a minute with a submachine gun while Suleiman threw two hand grenades, creating panic among the planes' 10 crew and 41 passengers. One passenger, Israeli Leon Shirdan, 50, of Haifa, a marine engineer, was killed. He was survived by his wife and then 15-year-old daughter. Two unidentified women were injured, one by a bullet, the other as she leaped from the jet when the door was opened.
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Mohammad and
Suleiman were taken into custody by Greek authorities. Both confessed they were members of a Palestinian organization and had planned to destroy the jet and kill all Israeli passengers aboard. Mohammad was sentenced to 17 years and 5 months in prison, but was freed after less than 4
350:
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288:, destroying 12 (or possibly 13) Lebanese passenger airplanes. The attack drew a sharp rebuke from the US, who stated that nothing suggested that the Lebanese authorities had anything to do with the El Al attack.
276:. Subsequently, he successfully hid his terrorist past and emigrated to Canada. Once Canadian authorities learned of his crime, a protracted extradition process culminated in his extradition to Lebanon in 2013.
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on July 23, shortly after it took-off from Rome for Tel Aviv and forced it to fly to
Algiers. Algeria eventually released all passengers, crew and the plane.
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247:. They arrived on an earlier Olympic Airways flight from Cairo. 37 of the 41 passengers boarded the flight in Tel Aviv, and four boarded in Athens.
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Days before the attack, European and
American authorities warned European airlines about bomb threats during the pre-Christmas holiday rush.
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334:"Should states be strictly liable for failing to prevent trans-border terrorism? A critique of Farouk Umar Abdumutalab"
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The two terrorists were 19-year-old Naheb H. Suleiman, born in
Tripoli, Libya, of Palestinian parents, and 25-year-old
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months after another
Palestinian terrorist group hijacked a Greek airliner and demanded his release in the
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387:"After 26-year fight, Canada finally deports Palestinian terrorist convicted of attack on Israeli plane"
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314:. Vol. 43, no. 12, 193. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. December 27, 1968. p. 1
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The incident came five months after a group of self-styled
Palestinian Arab commandos
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passenger plane while it was on the ground at a stopover in Athens en route from
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413:, Washington, December 29, 1968: Subject: Israeli Attack on Khaldeh Airport.
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Mohammad and
Suleiman attacked Flight 253 as it was about to depart from a
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243:. They were members of the Lebanese-based militant organization
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Telegram From the
Department of State to the Embassy in Israel
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Popular Front for the
Liberation of Palestine attacks
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List of attacks against
Israeli civilians before 1967
1312:Attacks on aircraft by Palestinian militant groups
1263:List of aviation accidents and incidents in Greece
1357:Accidents and incidents involving the Boeing 707
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351:"One Killed by Arabs on New York-Bound Jetliner"
286:Israel raided the Beirut International Airport
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987:
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245:Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
1347:Terrorist incidents in Greece in the 1960s
1101:Aviation accidents and incidents in Greece
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322:– via National Library of Australia.
306:"ATHENS INCIDENT Arabs attack Israeli jet"
196:was a terrorist attack perpetrated by the
1317:Palestinian terrorist incidents in Greece
1307:Palestinian terrorist incidents in Europe
796:MacRobertson Miller Airlines Flight 1750
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1342:Terrorist incidents in Europe in 1968
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16:1968 terrorist attack on a Boeing 707
1131:Olympic Airways Flight 255 hijacking
726:Wien Consolidated Airlines Flight 55
636:Garuda Indonesian Airways Flight 892
404:
384:
336:. legality blog. September 12, 2010.
274:Olympic Airways Flight 255 hijacking
646:Seaboard World Airlines Flight 253A
576:Hawker Hunter Tower Bridge incident
360:. December 26, 1968. Archived from
279:
13:
14:
1368:
776:North Central Airlines Flight 458
198:Palestine Liberation Organization
1056:
1051:
957:
952:
596:South African Airways Flight 228
452:Aviation accidents and incidents
25:
1182:Trans World Airlines Flight 847
656:BKS Air Transport Flight C.6845
536:Sainte-Marie Douglas DC-6 crash
266:
119:Ellinikon International Airport
62:Ellinikon International Airport
1337:December 1968 events in Europe
1266:Crashes in water near Greece:
676:Los Angeles Airways Flight 417
626:Los Angeles Airways Flight 841
237:Mahmoud Mohammad Issa Mohammad
1:
1297:El Al accidents and incidents
1004:Palestinian militancy attacks
746:Allegheny Airlines Flight 736
696:Northeast Airlines Flight 946
506:Civil Air Transport Flight 10
385:Bell, Philip (May 13, 2013).
291:
215:
1241:Turkish Airlines Flight 1476
496:Indian Air Force An-12 crash
261:
210:New York City, United States
7:
1198:Olympic Aviation Flight 545
556:Yuri Gagarin's MiG-15 crash
284:Two days after the attack,
10:
1373:
1155:Olympic Airways Flight 411
1147:Olympic Airways Flight 830
1123:Olympic Airways Flight 954
1019:El Al Flight 426 hijacking
882:El Al Flight 426 hijacking
786:Ozark Air Lines Flight 982
666:El Al Flight 426 hijacking
566:Ozark Air Lines Flight 965
1269:Cyprus Airways Flight 284
1259:
1233:Helios Airways Flight 522
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1106:
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486:Thule Air Base B-52 crash
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225:hijacked El Al Flight 426
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1037:TWA Flight 840 hijacking
923:TWA Flight 840 hijacking
706:Japan Air Lines Flight 2
616:Kham Duc C-130 shootdown
1352:International terrorism
1115:El Al Flight 253 attack
1031:El Al Flight 432 attack
1025:El Al Flight 253 attack
909:El Al Flight 432 attack
890:El Al Flight 253 attack
194:El Al Flight 253 attack
1302:1968 murders in Greece
1190:TWA Flight 840 bombing
939:Attacks launched from
861:in the history of the
686:Air France Flight 1611
863:Arab–Israeli conflict
546:Aer Lingus Flight 712
526:Air France Flight 212
358:Watertown Daily Times
1249:Meridian Flight 3032
1139:Lufthansa Flight 303
476:Aeroflot Flight 1668
31:A similar Boeing 707
1206:Aerosvit Flight 241
1163:Swissair Flight 316
1033:(February 18, 1969)
1027:(December 26, 1968)
1012:Aircraft hijackings
814:► 1969
808:1967 ◄
241:Mandatory Palestine
21:
916:Jerusalem bombings
811:
606:Braniff Flight 352
516:Aeroflot Flight 15
311:The Canberra Times
239:, born in 1943 in
81:Aircraft type
37:Terrorist Incident
19:
1284:
1283:
1068:
1067:
1039:(August 29, 1969)
969:
968:
855:terrorist attacks
820:
819:
766:Pan Am Flight 799
736:Pan Am Flight 217
716:Pan Am Flight 281
190:
189:
45:December 26, 1968
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1279:
1278:(September 1974)
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280:Retributory raid
206:Tel Aviv, Israel
200:(PLO) against a
53:Terrorist attack
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1322:1960s in Athens
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137:New York City
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1006:in the 1960s
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394:. Retrieved
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362:the original
328:
316:. Retrieved
309:
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270:
267:Perpetrators
249:
234:
222:
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193:
191:
1251:(July 2022)
1227:(July 2000)
1184:(June 1985)
1174:1980s-1990s
1133:(July 1970)
1107:1960s-1970s
925:(August 29)
133:Destination
1291:Categories
1217:Since 2000
1002:Prominent
853:Prominent
292:References
216:Background
202:Boeing 707
167:Fatalities
151:Passengers
85:Boeing 707
884:(July 23)
318:August 7,
262:Aftermath
183:Survivors
859:Israelis
857:against
396:15 April
175:Injuries
141:New York
115:Stopover
105:Tel Aviv
91:Operator
76:Aircraft
941:Lebanon
456: (
454:in 1968
252:layover
50:Summary
936:
865:– the
792:Dec 31
782:Dec 27
772:Dec 27
762:Dec 26
752:Dec 26
742:Dec 24
732:Dec 12
712:Nov 24
702:Nov 22
692:Oct 25
682:Sep 11
672:Aug 14
662:Jul 23
632:May 28
622:May 22
612:May 12
592:Apr 20
562:Mar 27
552:Mar 27
542:Mar 24
512:Feb 29
502:Feb 16
482:Jan 21
256:Athens
231:Attack
127:Greece
123:Athens
109:Israel
70:Greece
66:Athens
1062:1970s
1049:1950s
963:1970s
950:1950s
867:1960s
722:Dec 2
652:Jul 3
642:Jul 1
602:May 3
582:Apr 8
572:Apr 5
532:Mar 9
522:Mar 6
492:Feb 7
472:Jan 6
365:(PDF)
354:(PDF)
208:, to
95:El Al
1261:See
901:1969
874:1968
458:1968
398:2013
320:2021
192:The
159:Crew
58:Site
42:Date
254:in
1293::
1273:·
389:.
373:^
356:.
342:^
308:.
212:.
186:50
162:10
154:41
143:,
139:,
125:,
121:,
107:,
68:,
64:,
1094:e
1087:t
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995:e
988:t
981:v
846:e
839:t
832:v
460:)
443:e
436:t
429:v
400:.
178:2
170:1
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