LIBYAN UNDER QADHAFI: A PATTERN OF AGGRESSION

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• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91B00874R000200110027-0
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 18
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 7, 2011
• Sequence Number: 27
• Content Type: REPORT

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Libya Under Qadhafi:
A Pattern of Aggression
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Libya Under Qadhafi: A Pattern of Aggression
1
Character of Libyan Policy
1
Libyan Involvement in Terrorism
1
Libyan Links to Middle East Radicals
2
Libyan Terrorism Against the United States
2
Meddling in Latin America and the Caribbean
4
Chronology of Libyan Support for Terrorism 1980-85
7
The Abu Nidal Group
13
Background
13
Current Operations and Trends
14
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Libya Under Qadhafi:
A Pattern of Aggression
Character of Libyan Policy
Mu'ammar Qadhafi seized power in a military coup
in 1969. Since then he has forcibly sought to remake
Libyan society according to his own revolutionary
precepts. Qadhafi's ambitions are not confined within
Libya's borders, however. He fancies himself a leader
and agent of historic forces that will reorder Third
World politics to his taste. His vision provides both a
motive and a rationale for providing military and
financial aid to radical regimes, and for undermining
moderate governments by supporting-or manufac-
turing-subversive groups and abetting terrorists.
Qadhafi's aggressive policies increasingly have fo-
cused on undermining US and other Western interests
in the Third World as he sees these as the main
barrier to his radical and expansionist goals. Qadha-
fi's commitment of political, economic, and military
resources in support of anti-Western activities world-
wide may be surpassed only by the Soviet Union, its
East European allies, and possibly North Korea or
Cuba. He is particularly hostile to Israel and the
United States. His tactics include a mixture of threats
and material support for terrorism, offers of coopera-
tion, economic incentives and intimidation, and out-
right military aggression.
Libyan Involvement in Terrorism
Qadhafi has used terrorism as one of the primary
instruments of his foreign policy and supports radical
groups that use terrorist tactics. Tripoli operates
numerous training camps for foreign dissident groups
that provide instruction in the use of explosive devices,
hijacking, assassination, and various commando and
guerrilla techniques. Libya also abuses diplomatic
privilege by storing arms and explosives at its diplo-
matic establishments, as occurred during the shootout
at its embassy in London in April 1984.
The main targets of Libyan terrorist activities have
been expatriate Libyan dissidents and leading officials
of moderate Arab and African governments. In al-
most all cases, the assassins use handguns to kill their
victims, often provided by the Libyan diplomatic
establishment in their country. Qadhafi generally uses
Libyans for antiexile operations; for other types of
attacks he tends to employ surrogates or mercenaries.
The Libyan Government in 1980 began a concerted
effort to assassinate anti-Qadhafi exiles. By the time
the first phase ended in 1981, 11 Libyan dissidents
living abroad had been murdered. Libya in 1985
sponsored five attacks against exiled Libyan dissi-
dents. Targets of these attacks lived in Greece, West
Germany, Cyprus, Italy, and Austria.
Qadhafi has at least twice tried to murder Libyan
exiles in Egypt only to have his agents intercepted by
Egyptian security. In the more recent attempt, a four-
man Libyan team was arrested in November during
an attempted attack against a gathering of exiles near
Cairo.
Libya also has plotted antiexile attacks in the United
States. A Libyan exile in Colorado was shot and
wounded by a Libyan-hired assassin in 1981. In May
1984, the FBI arrested two Libyans near Philadelphia
for attempting to buy silenced handguns-the usual
Libyan assassination weapon. A year later in May
1985, a Libyan diplomat at the United Nations was
declared persona non grata and a ring of nonofficial
Libyans was broken up in connection with a plot to
kill Libyan dissidents in four states.
Qadhafi also targets moderate Arab governments for
their refusal to continue the military struggle against
Israel and for their links to the West. There is
evidence of Libyan-backed assassination plots against
such Arab leaders as President Mubarak of Egypt
and former President Nimeiri of Sudan. For example,
those arrested after last November's attempted attack
on Libyan exiles in Egypt stated that Qadhafi's target
list included President Mubarak. Jordan's King Hus-
sein and Iraq's Saddam Husayn are almost certainly
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on Qadhafi's list because of restored ties to Cairo and
Washington, respectively.
Qadhafi also has been implicated in plots to assassi-
nate other moderate heads of state. In September
1984 the Chadian Government uncovered a Libyan-
sponsored plot in which a briefcase bomb was to
explode during a cabinet meeting chaired by Chadian
President Habre. More recently, Zairian officials
thwarted a Libyan-sponsored plot against President
Mobutu in September 1985.
Libyan Links to Middle East Radicals
Longstanding Libyan support for radical Palestinian
groups is growing. Qadhafi has provided safehaven,
money, and arms to these groups-including the
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General
Command, the Fatah dissidents, and the notorious
Abu Nidal Group. Training for Palestinians and other
radicals frequently takes place at several locations in
Libya. These anti-Arafat Palestinians are widely en-
gaged in terrorist activities and focus their terrorist
activity on Israel and the occupied territories. More
recently, however, Libya's support has broadened to
include logistic support for terrorist operations. For
example, Libya provided passports to the Abu Nidal
members responsible for the attack on the El Al
counter in Vienna. The Abu Nidal Group is particu-
larly appealing to Qadhafi because of its track record
of successful terrorist operations. Abu Nidal's target-
ing of moderate Palestinians and moderate Arab
leaders is consistent with Libya's antipathy toward
participants in the peace process. According to Libyan
press reports, Abu Nidal met with Qadhafi in Libya
at least twice in 1985. Abu Nidal also gave an
interview in Tripoli to a German publication last year
and met with Qadhafi's chief lieutenant, Abd al-
Salam Jallud. In addition, Libya has provided sanctu-
ary, training assistance, and financial support to the
Abu Nidal organization, and there are reliable press
and other reports that its headquarters have been
moved to Libya. The evidence points to Libya's
having been involved in the bloody hijacking of
Egyptair 648 (see section on Abu Nidal).
Libya is trying to improve ties to other regional
terrorist groups. Qadhafi would also like closer links
to Tehran's terrorist effort. He announced a "strate-
gic alliance" with Iran last summer, which he hopes to
use as a foundation for joint operational planning for
terrorist attacks against various regional foes. He also
supports Egyptian and Tunisian dissidents.
Libya also provided refuge for notorious international
terrorist Carlos, who headed a network of terrorists
for hire. His group was responsible for numerous
vicious attacks including the hostage-taking of OPEC
oil ministers in Vienna in 1975.
Libyan Terrorism Against the United States
During the past 18 months, Qadhafi has made several
public references to expanding his terrorism campaign
to cover US targets. In a June 1984 speech, for
example, he told his Libyan audience that "we are
capable of exporting terrorism to the heart of Ameri-
ca." During a speech last September observing the
16th anniversary of his takeover, Qadhafi remarked
that "we have the right to fight America, and we have
the right to export terrorism to them ..." Qadhafi
recently threatened in a press conference on 2 Janu-
ary to "pursue US citizens in their country and
streets" if the United States takes action in response
to Libya's alleged involvement in the Rome and
Vienna terrorist attacks.
There have been several instances over the years of
Libyan-sponsored attacks against US interests. These
examples include the sacking of our Embassy in
Tripoli in 1979 and the discovery by Sudanese au-
thorities of a Libyan plot to blow up the American
Embassy Club in Khartoum by planting explosives in
stereo speakers. US personnel also have been on
Qadhafi's target list, as indicated by the plan in 1977
to assassinate our Ambassador in Cairo.
Radicalism in the Arab World
Qadhafi's foremost ambition is to dominate and unite
the Arab world. He frequently compares himself to
Garibaldi or Bismarck and has justified his use of
violence and terrorism against moderate Arab re-
gimes as necessary to achieve Arab unity.
Egypt, because of its peace treaty with Israel, is a
special target. Libyan agents have been active in
Egypt since the 1970s, and Qadhafi has offered
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support to various opponents of the Egyptian Govern-
ment. In October 1981, immediately after President
Sadat was assassinated, Qadhafi called on Egyptians
to overthrow their government; within a week at Cairo
International Airport, two bombs exploded that had
been concealed in luggage unloaded from a flight
originating in Tripoli.
More recently, Qadhafi has sought to embarrass the
government of President Mubarak and undermine the
Egyptian economy. A Libyan ship captained by a
senior Libyan naval commando laid mines in the Red
Sea and Gulf of Suez that damaged 18 merchant
ships in July and August 1984. In May 1985 the
Egyptians thwarted a plot by radical Palestinians
backed by Libya to destroy the US Embassy in Cairo
with a truck bomb. Last summer Qadhafi expelled
over 10,000 Egyptian workers in Libya-confiscating
their savings and most of their belongings-in what
was in part an effort to place a greater burden on the
strained Egyptian economy. Also during 1985, Cairo
captured several teams of Libyan-supported Egyptian
dissidents who reported that their plan was to destabi-
lize the Mubarak government through sabotage and
inciting civil unrest.
Sudan also is a priority target. Qadhafi has long
offered training and support to Sudanese dissidents
and sponsored acts of sabotage against the govern-
ment of former President Nimeiri. He was a major
source of arms and money for southern Sudanese
rebels that began a guerrilla war against the central
government two years ago. In February 1983 the
Sudanese, with Egyptian assistance, thwarted a Liby-
an-sponsored coup attempt, and in March 1984 a
Libyan TU-22 bombed Omdurman, Sudan, in a failed
attempt to destroy a radio station there that broadcast
condemnations of Qadhafi's policies by Libyan
oppositionists.
Since Nimeiri's fall from power, Qadhafi has exploit-
ed the resumption of diplomatic ties to Sudan to build
a network for subversion inimical to Sudan's efforts to
establish a parliamentary democracy. A number of
known Libyan terrorists have been assigned to the
Libyan People's Bureau (Embassy) or airline office in
Khartoum. Qadhafi also has provided arms, funding,
training, and probably direction to the Sudanese
Revolutionary Committees, a small group in Sudan
dedicated to establishing a government on the Libyan
model in Sudan. In May, a planeload of these dissi-
dents arrived in Khartoum armed with assault rifles.
Qadhafi also is working to expand his influence in the
countries of the Arab Maghreb. Qadhafi refuses to
negotiate with Algeria to determine the correct loca-
tion of the Libyan-Algerian border. Perhaps angered
over President Bendjedid's moderation, Qadhafi re-
portedly provides money to Algerian dissidents such
as Ahmed Ben Bella.
In Tunisia, Qadhafi has long sought to bring down
the pro-Western government of Habib Bourguiba. In
1980, Libyan-supported guerrillas attacked the south-
ern Tunisian mining town of Gafsa; when France
offered its support to Tunis, Libyan mobs burned both
the French and Tunisian Embassies while security
forces stood idly by. Following bread riots in Tunisia
in January 1984, saboteurs originating in Libya dyna-
mited a pipeline near the Libyan-Tunisian border. In
an effort to exacerbate social tensions this past year,
Qadhafi expelled over 30,000 Tunisian workers and
confiscated their property. In September, when Tuni-
sian newspapers attacked Qadhafi for the expulsions,
a Libyan diplomat attempted to mail letter bombs to
the critical journalists. Several exploded, wounding
two postal workers and causing Tunis to sever diplo-
matic relations.
Libya is staunchly opposed to the Middle East peace
process, and Qadhafi is doing all he can to subvert it.
In Lebanon, Libyan arms and money have flowed to
different militias and Palestinian groups actively op-
posed to the government of President Gemayel. Qad-
hafi has been especially eager to undermine the
influence of PLO Chairman Yasir Arafat because
Qadhafi perceives him as too willing to consider a
negotiated settlement with Israel. As a result, Qadha-
fi has thrown his support to radical Palestinian
groups-including the Fatah Revolutionary Council
led by Abu Nidal-that advocate continued war
against Israel. Since 1981 Qadhafi has shipped these
groups items as prosaic as uniforms and as powerful
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as tanks and BM-21 multiple rocket launchers. In
1984, Libyan troops participated in the Syrian-backed
assault on Arafat's forces in northern Lebanon.
The Persian Gulf also is an arena for Libyan med-
dling. Qadhafi has allied himself with Iran in its war
against Iraq and has provided Tehran with T-55
tanks, antitank and antiaircraft artillery, ammunition,
and even Scud rockets. In addition, Libya provides
arms and money to Kurdish separatists in northern
Iraq and to the antigovernment group the "Union of
Iraqi Democrats." In 1984 and 1985, Libyan agents
attempted to disrupt the Islamic pilgrimage ceremo-
nies in Saudi Arabia; in 1984 entire planeloads of
Libyan "pilgrims" were discovered to be carrying
arms. Libya continues to enjoy good relations with
and has provided support to the National Democratic
Front that operates out of Marxist South Yemen
against the government of President Salih in North
Yemen. Although Libya restored diplomatic relations
with Somalia last May, Qadhafi has not severed his
relationship with Somali opposition groups he has
long supported.
Involvement in Sub-Saharan Africa
Tripoli views black Africa as a principal arena for
forging a group of anti-Western radical states that
will strengthen Libyan influence in international
forums and confer upon Qadhafi status as a world
leader. Qadhafi's aggressiveness has been strength-
ened by the propensity of the international community
to ignore his often blatant disregard for the sovereign-
ty of small African nations.
Chad, of course, is the most egregious example. In
1973 Qadhafi forcibly annexed the northern portion
of Chad known as the Aozou Strip. Throughout the
1970s, Libya supported various tribal and guerrilla
groups in Chad in a bid to install a pliable regime in
N'Djamena. Having failed to achieve this indirectly,
in October 1980 the Libyan army entered Chad and
attempted to impose a union between the two coun-
tries. The Libyan occupation force withdrew in No-
vember 1981, but returned in 1983 when the pro-
Libyan Chadian leader Goukouni Oueddei was ousted
by current President Hissein Habre. Only interven-
tion by French armed forces confined the Libyan
occupation to the northern 40 percent of Chad.
French forces were withdrawn in the fall of 1984, but
Qadhafi reneged on an agreement reached with Presi-
dent Mitterrand and continues to occupy northern
Chad with an army of several thousand.
The drought-battered countries of the Sahel offer
Qadhafi many opportunities for meddling. Qadhafi
continues to provide arms and training to the nomadic
Tuareg tribesmen in an effort to undermine the
Governments of Mali and Niger.
Qadhafi also is determined to topple President
Mobutu of Zaire. Qadhafi is motivated by hostility to
Kinshasa's close ties to the West, its recognition of
Israel, and its support for Chadian President Habre.
Qadhafi also is aware of Zaire's role as a leading
producer of cobalt and other strategic minerals. Trip-
oli provides training in sabotage and small arms to
several different guerrilla groups including the Na-
tional Front for the Liberation of the Congo and the
Congolese National Movement. Libyan diplomatic
facilities in countries bordering Zaire are centers of
support for these groups.
Meddling in Latin America and the Caribbean
Qadhafi's determination to strike at US interests and
to spread his philosophy of revolution has led to a
more aggressive Libyan posture in Latin America.
Although many governments and groups in this region
are wary of Qadhafi, some are willing to accept his
financial and military support.
Tripoli views Nicaragua as its base in Central Ameri-
ca and accordingly seeks to strengthen the Sandinista
dictatorship in Managua. In addition to several hun-
dred million dollars in economic assistance, Qadhafi's
support to the Sandinistas has included antiaircraft
guns, SA-7 surface-to-air missiles and launchers, and
small arms. At least several dozen Libyan military
personnel are in Nicaragua. Libyan support has en-
hanced the Sandinistas' ability to subvert neighboring
states. In addition, Libya has provided some arms and
money to insurgents in Guatemala and El Salvador,
as well as the M-19 terrorist group in Colombia.
During the past year Libya has provided training,
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guidance, and funds to a key far-left terrorist group to
enable it to expand armed action against the Govern-
ment of Chile.
Libyan agents have been increasingly active among
the Caribbean islands, especially since the summer of
1984. The loss of its People's Bureau in Grenada
following the collapse of the Bishop government in
1983 forced Tripoli to attempt to establish its centers
for subversion in other diplomatic posts in the region.
Qadhafi also has used religion as a cover for intelli-
gence activities in the area, sponsoring Islamic confer-
ences in which the Libyan participants often are
intelligence officers or operatives of the Libyan Revo-
lutionary Committees. Leftist leaders from the Do-
minican Republic, Dominica, Barbados, Antigua, St.
Vincent, St. Lucia, the French Departments, and
elsewhere have also been invited to Libya for "semi-
nars" and paramilitary training. Particularly worri-
some is Libyan urging of leftist politicians to under-
take violent action rather than pursue legal means to
replace moderate governments in the region.
South and Southeast Asia
As elsewhere, Libyan diplomatic missions in this
region provide the infrastructure for Libyan subver-
sion, disbursing funds, and arranging for the training
of leftists and other dissidents.
In South Asia, Libyan activities are focused on the
Islamic states. No doubt reflecting his dependence on
Russian arms, Qadhafi is one of the few Muslim
leaders who does not criticize the Soviet invasion of
Afghanistan. Although Libya maintains relations
with Pakistan, it has also been involved with the "al-
Zulfiqar" terrorist group. Qadhafi, in addition, has
provided training and money to opponents of Presi-
dent Ershad of Bangladesh.
In Southeast Asia, Qadhafi concentrates on Muslim
minorities. For some time, he has provided paramili-
tary training to the small Muslim insurgency in
southern Thailand. In the Philippines, Libya contin-
ues to send assistance to the Muslim Moro separatists
on Mindanao despite a 1976 agreement with Manila
to cease such aid. New Caledonia, a French possession
in the South Pacific, has no appreciable Muslim
population, but Libya has nevertheless provided mili-
tary training and some funding to the Kanak Socialist
National Liberation Front, the group responsible for
most of the proindependence violence on the island.
Libyan intelligence operatives are known to be active
on other islands in Oceania.
The Erosion of International Norms
Qadhafi's subversion is not confined to those countries
that are the direct object of his ambitions. The
international community as a whole suffers from
Qadhafi's disrespect for international norms of behav-
ior and accepted practice. Qadhafi has abused diplo-
matic privilege for terrorist purposes, reneged on
international agreements, and blatantly used terrorist
violence against political opponents. In addition, Qad-
hafi's support of terrorism, regardless of his direct
operational involvement in a given terrorist act, helps
legitimize terrorism as an acceptable political activity.
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Chronology of Libyan Support for Terrorism 1980-85
1985
December Italy/Austria Passports used by Abu Nidal terrorists in attack on El Al counter provided by
Libya.
November Malta Hijacking of Egyptair airliner by Abu Nidal supporters may have involved
Libyan support.
Egypt Four-man team of Libyan agents arrested shortly before attempting to attack
gathering of Libyan exiles. Former Libyan Prime Minister Bakoush was the
main target.
October Greece Libyan merchant wounded in Athens by two gunmen; the victim had left Libya
five years earlier.
September Tunisia Libyan diplomat smuggles about 100 letter bombs addressed to journalists into
Tunisia. Several explode injuring two postal workers and causing Tunisia to
sever diplomatic relations.
May United States A Libyan diplomat at the United Nations was declared persona non grata, and
16 nonofficial Libyans were subpoenaed to appear before a US grand jury in
connection with a plot to kill dissidents in several different states.
April West Germany Moroccan citizen resident in the FRG since 1960 killed by a Libyan, who was
arrested at the scene.
Anti-Qadhafi Libyan student killed in Bonn by Libyan gunman who was
arrested. The assassin also wounded two German passers-by, one seriously. The
victim had been a target of the Libyan regime for at least two years.
Cyprus Libyan businessman assassinated in downtown Nicosia by an unidentified
gunman. The victim was the director of an offshore holding company and was
believed to be an opponent of the Libyan regime.
March Italy Libyan jeweler murdered in his shop in Rome. A silencer-equipped pistol was
left at the scene by the assassin.
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February Austria Former Libyan Ambassador to Austria severely wounded by two shots fired
from a car outside his home in Vienna. The victim had supported Qadhafi's sei-
zure of power in 1969, but he quit his post in disgust at the regime in 1980.
1984
November Egypt President Mubarak announces that four assassins sent to Egypt by Libya to kill
former Libyan Prime Minister Bakoush had been arrested and forced to send
fake pictures to the Libyan Embassy in Malta showing Bakoush apparently
dead. Official Libyan press sources then claimed Bakoush had been executed by
suicide squads sent abroad "to liquidate enemies of the revolution."
September Italy A Libyan exile was found gagged and strangled in a hotel in Rome. The victim
had been the subject of Libyan requests for deportation to Libya.
Chad Chadians discover plot to assassinate President Habre with an attache case
bomb. Evidence of the plot, including photographs of the bomb, was provided to
the United Nations the following February when Chad lodged a complaint
against Libya.
August United One of six Libyans awaiting trial for bomb attacks in London in March 1983
Kingdom found shot to death in a London apartment. The victim may have been silenced
by the Libyan Government.
Belgium A bomb wrecks a car parked in front of the Zairian Embassy in Brussels.
July Belgium A bomb exploded in the Brussels office of Air Zaire.
Red Sea Libya mined the Red Sea, damaging 18 merchant ships of varying nationalities.
Greece Two Libyan students found murdered in their apartment in a crime reminiscent
of Libyan killings of anti-Qadhafi students in 1980 and 1981. The two were
beaten, strangled, and gagged before being shot twice in the back.
June Greece Anti-Qadhafi Libyan editor of an Arab newspaper in Athens killed by two men
on a motorbike.
A Libyan-born citizen known to distribute anti-Qadhafi literature at his store
shot by a Libyan employee of Libyan Arab Airlines.
May Libya Jana, the official Libyan news agency, announces "the Libyan masses have
decided to form suicide commandos to chase traitors and stray dogs wherever
they are and liquidate them physically."
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April United A bomb hidden in an unclaimed suitcase probably unloaded from a Libyan
Kingdom airliner explodes at London's Heathrow Airport, injuring 25.
Libya A number of British subjects in Libya arrested on trumped-up charges as
hostages in order to pressure British Government during siege of Libyan
People's Bureau in London.
United British policewoman killed and 11 anti-Qadhafi demonstrators wounded by
Kingdom gunfire from London Libyan People's Bureau. After a siege, British authorities
found weapons and spent shell casings in the vacated embassy.
March United Four bombs explode in London and Manchester near homes of Libyan exiles or
Kingdom at businesses frequented by them. Over 25 people injured. Three other bombs
defused. Nine Libyan suspects arrested.
Sudan One Libyan TU-22 bomber drops bombs on Omdurman, Sudan, site of a radio
transmitter used by anti-Qadhafi oppositionists.
February Libya Following annual Libyan General People's Congress, the Libyan Revolutionary
Committees announce that all Libyan exiles must return to Libya or face "the
death penalty."
Libyan authorities take no action while a mob burned the Jordanian Embassy
in Tripoli.
Congo Chadian dissidents ready to negotiate with Government of Chad threatened in
Brazzaville, Congo.
1983
August Upper Volta Libya gave material support to coup in Upper Volta.
July Chad Libya invaded Chad for the second time. Occupation continues into 1985.
June West Germany Eight Libyan students in West Germany, all members of an anti-Qadhafi
group, complain Libyan agents are harassing and threatening them.
February Libya Libyan General People's Congress warns all Libyans in exile to return home or
face the "anger of the Libyan people."
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1981
November
Sudan
Several bombs explode near government installations in Khartoum.
October
Sudan
Planned assassination of visiting Chadian official, Hissein Habre, failed when
those sent to conduct the operation surrendered.
Egypt
Two bombs explode in luggage being unloaded from a plane coming from Libya
via Malta.
August
Libya
Two Libyan SU-22s that fired at US Navy F-14s over Gulf of Sidra shot down.
July
United States
Anti-Qadhafi Libyan student killed in Ogden, Utah.
June
Sudan
Bomb explodes in front of Chadian Embassy in Khartoum.
February
Italy
Libyan gunmen open fire on passengers arriving at Rome's airport on a flight
from Algiers. Prominent anti-Qadhafi exile was the target.
1980
November
United
Anti-Qadhafi Libyan student brutally murdered in London.
Kingdom
Two children of an anti-Qadhafi Libyan poisoned by eating peanuts containing
thalium.
October
Chad
Libyan forces occupied Chad. Qadhafi attempted to force a Libyan-Chadian
union.
The Gambia
Libyan subversion in The Gambia caused break in relations. Senegalese troops
intervene under a mutual defense treaty.
June
Italy
Anti-Qadhafi exile wounded in Rome.
Libyan exile killed in Milan within hours after expiration of a deadline set by
Qadhafi for all Libyan exiles to return home.
May
Italy
Libyan exile shot at in Rome. The arrested Libyan gunman says he was sent by
Libya "to kill an enemy of the people."
Greece
Libyan exile killed in Athens. His throat was slit.
10
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Italy
Libyan businessman found strangled to death in Rome.
West Germany Libyan exile gunned down in Bonn.
Italy
Libyan exile killed in Rome by two gunshots to the head.
April
United
Libyan lawyer shot and killed in London.
Kingdom
Italy
Well-known Libyan businessman killed. The arrested assassin said he was an
enemy of Colonel Qadhafi.
United
Two gunmen kill an anti-Qadhafi Libyan journalist.
Kingdom
February
Libya
Tunisian and French Embassies in Tripoli sacked and burned by a mob while
Libyan authorities took no action.
1979
December
Libya
An estimated 2,000 Libyans set fire to the US Embassy in Tripoli. The Libyan
authorities did not respond to requests by the Embassy for protection.
November
West Germany Two Libyans arrested with three suspected Palestinians for an unspecified
terrorist operation.
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The Abu Nidal Group
Introduction
The Abu Nidal Group is among the most dangerous
of the Middle Eastern terrorist organizations. It is
probably the best organized and most effective of the
radical Palestinian terrorist groups, carefully planning
its operations and keeping its information tightly
compartmented.
The group has repeatedly demonstrated its ability to
operate in any country it chooses. It has staged
attacks in over 20 countries on three continents and
operates throughout the Middle East.
Abu Nidal has conducted over 60 terrorist attacks
during the last eight years-at least 30 of them since
the beginning of 1984. Two-thirds of the group's
nearly 20 attacks this year have taken place in
Western Europe, as innocent bystanders increasingly
have become casualties of the group's assaults:
? The simultaneous attacks on airline offices in Rome
and Vienna on 27 December, which have the hall-
marks of Abu Nidal, left more than a dozen dead,
including five Americans.
? The Egyptair hijacking in late November ultimately
cost the lives of 59 passengers.
? The group bombed the British Air office in Rome in
September injuring 15 persons, many of them
passers-by.
? Abu Nidal members threw grenades at Rome's
Cafe de Paris in September, injuring 38 tourists-
among them Americans, Germans, Britons, Italians,
Argentines, and Brazilians.
? The group bombed two hotels in Athens, one in
September that injured 19, mostly British tourists,
and one in August that injured 13 Britons.
? In Spain, Abu Nidal attacks in July at the British
Air office and the nearby Alia ticket office killed
one and wounded 24 customers and employees.
? Also in July the group was probably responsible for
the bombing of two restaurants in Kuwait, killing
eight and injuring almost 90.
? In April, an Abu Nidal terrorist fired a rocket at a
Jordanian airliner as it was taking off from Athens
airport. The rocket hit the plane but did not explode.
Hundreds of casualties might have resulted had the
operation been successful.
The official name of the Abu Nidal organization is
"Fatah-Revolutionary Council," which it usually
employs when attacking Israeli targets. But it has
employed a number of covernames for its operations.
Originally the group operated under the name Black
June; more recently, the group has used the name
Arab Revolutionary Brigades when it staged attacks
against Persian Gulf targets. It also acts as Black
September when it attacks Jordanian and Palestinian
targets and employs the name Revolutionary Organi-
zation of Socialist Moslems (ROSM) as its signature
for attacks against British targets. It added Egyptian
nomenclatures when it hijacked the Egyptair plane in
November.
Background
The group, which is headed by Sabri al-Banna (who
uses the nom de guerre Abu Nidal), grew out of
elements that broke away a decade ago from PLO
Chairman Arafat's Fatah organization. The group is
committed to the use of violence to destroy diplomatic
efforts designed to reconcile Israel and the Arab
states, especially those mounted earlier this year by
King Hussein and Arafat's PLO. The Abu Nidal
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Group also calls for the destruction of ruling "re-
actionary" regimes such as Jordan, Egypt, and the
Persian Gulf states and is critical of what it sees as
Arafat's and the PLO's moderation and lack of
revolutionary base and zeal. Consequently, the group
contends that both inter-Arab and intra-Palestinian
terrorism are needed to force the all-embracing Arab
revolution, which in turn would lead to the liberation
of Palestine.
The group was formed in 1974 after Arafat instituted
a ban on PLO involvement with international terror-
ism outside Israel and the occupied territories. Abu
Nidal's radical views found favor at the time with the
Iraqi regime, which helped him create the organiza-
tion that Abu Nidal called Fatah-the Revolutionary
Council to promote his claim that his organization,
rather than the one led by Arafat, was the legitimate
Fatah. He has similarly duplicated other Fatah orga-
nizational titles to suggest a parallel structure with
the original.
Beginning in the early 1980s, Baghdad suppressed
activities of the Abu Nidal Group out of Iraq. Ele-
ments of the group then moved to Damascus. Since
early 1984, Liyba began to provide increased support
to the group, and Abu Nidal himself and many of the
group's operations may have moved there within the
last 12 months.
The group probably has several hundred members,
although an accurate count is difficult. We believe the
group has a number of cells throughout Western
Europe and the Middle East and makes use of the
large number of Palestinian students studying abroad,
sometimes involving them in operations after only
perfunctory training. These new recruits, for example,
were involved in the five grenade attacks staged by
the group in 1985.
Current Operations and Trends
Based on the style of Abu Nidal attacks, it is evident
that the group is willing to cause indiscriminate
casualties. Apart from assassinations of particular
individuals, Abu Nidal operations through November
1985 resulted in nearly 70 deaths and 201 wounded
among innocent bystanders-and the number could
have been much higher if the Jordanian airliner
attack in Athens had been successful. In the previous
year, 111 died in the crash of a Gulf Air jet on which
an Abu Nidal bomb may have exploded.
The Abu Nidal Group has concentrated on attacking
Jordanian interests since 1984. These attacks were
provoked by the Jordanian agreement to host the
PNC meeting in November 1984 and King Hussein's
February accord with Arafat to restart the stalled
Middle East peace process. Abu Nidal operatives are
thought to have assassinated former West Bank may-
or and Palestinian moderate Fahd Qawasmeh in
December 1984 shortly after his election to the PLO
Executive Council. The anti-Jordanian/PLO cam-
paign has not abated. As long as Jordanian and PLO
efforts toward Middle East peace negotiations contin-
ue, attacks against both Jordanian and Palestinian
targets probably will also continue.
Aside from the attack on Alia offices in Madrid in
July and the attempt to down a Jordanian airliner
over Athens in April, other incidents involving Jorda-
nian targets in 1985 have included:
? The 24 November assassination of a Palestinian in
Amman.
? The murder of a Jordanian publisher in Athens in
September.
? A plot to assassinate the Jordanian Ambassador to
Greece in August.
? The murder of a Jordanian diplomat in Ankara on
24 July.
? A rocket attack on the Jordanian Embassy in Rome
in April.
The group has also targeted British interests. ROSM
claimed responsibility for the kidnaping in March
1985 of a British journalist in Lebanon and the
assassination of British diplomats in India and Greece
in 1984. The purpose of the attacks probably is to
force the United Kingdom to release group members
imprisoned for the attempted assassination of the
Israeli Ambassador in London in June 1982.
Even before the recent attacks on the Vienna and
Rome airports, Abu Nidal had begun to concentrate
his field of operations in Western Europe. Although
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his targets have been his usual enemies-for example,
British, Israeli, moderate Arab-he has become very
indiscriminate about injuring bystanders. The rela-
tively relaxed controls in West European countries
have been conducive to his operations there. The
pattern of concentrating his efforts in Europe has
coincided with the strengthening of his links to Libya.
The likelihood of Libyan financing, safehaven, and
logistic assistance should be very helpful to his future
international terrorist operations.
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