Wael Zwaiter

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Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Abdel Wael Zwaiter (Template:Langx; also known as Wa'el Zu'aytir;[1] 2 January 1934 – 16 October 1972) was a Palestinian writer and translator. He was assassinated as the first target of Israel's Mossad assassinations following the Munich massacre. Israel considered Zwaiter a terrorist for his role in the Black September group,[2] while his supporters argued that he was "never conclusively linked" with Black September or the Munich massacre and was killed in retribution.[3][4] Today Zwaiter is regarded with a high degree of certainty as innocent.[5]

Early life and education

Abdel Wael Zwaiter was born in Nablus in 1934, the son of Adel Zu'aiter.[6][7]

He went to Iraq and studied Arabic literature and philosophy at the University of Baghdad.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".

Career

Zwaiter moved then to Libya and afterwards to Rome, where he was a PLO representative and worked as a translator for the Libyan embassy.[8]

In addition to his native Arabic, Zwaiter spoke French, Italian, and English. During his time in Italy, Zwaiter was in the process of translating One Thousand and One Nights from Arabic into Italian, but according to Emily Jacir, he never completed this.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".

Killing

Zwaiter was held for questioning by Italian police in August 1972 in relation to a bombing by the group Black September against an oil refinery, but was later released. The Israeli Mossad suspected him of being the head of Black September in Rome, and put him on an assassination list after Black September's attack in Munich. When he returned to his apartment building on the night of 16 October 1972, he was killed by two Mossad agents who shot him 11 times in the lobby of the building – one bullet for each Israeli athlete killed.[9]

At the time, Zwaiter was the PLO representative in Italy, and while Israel privately claimed he was a member of Black September and was involved in a failed plot against an El Al airliner, members of the PLO have argued that he was in no way connected. Abu Iyad, deputy-chief of the PLO, stated that Zwaiter was "energetically" against political violence.[10] Zwaiter was living with his partner Janet Venn-Brown, an Australian artist, in Rome.[11]

The Italian Communist Party (PCI) declared that it disapproved of the killing of Zwaiter.[12] A funeral ceremony was held for Zwaiter in Rome with the attendance of many people, including officials of the PCI.[12] He was buried in his hometown, Nablus.[13]

A top Mossad official who looked at the Zwaiter file years too late admitted that “it was a terrible mistake.” Palestinians have long insisted that Zwaiter was a peaceable intellectual who abhorred violence.[14]Template:Better source

Portrayal in film

  • Wael Zwaiter is portrayed by actor Makram Khoury in Steven Spielberg's Munich.
  • "Material for a film": Retracing Wael Zuaiter (Part 1)], installation in the 2007 La Biennale di Venezia by Emily Jacir.[15]
  • Emily Jacir: "Material for a film": A performance (Part 2)], 16 July 2007, The Electronic Intifada[16]
    • Najwan Darwis: Emily Jacir’s Material for a Film: Ongoing homage and artistic revenge for Wa’el Zuaiter.[17]

References

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  1. ↑ Khalidi, Rashid. The Hundred Years' War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017. Kindle edition. Profile Books, 2020.
  2. ↑ Michael Bar-Zohar and Eitan Haber. (2005). Massacre in Munich. The Lyons Press. p. 146
  3. ↑ Johnson, Ken. "Material for a Palestinian’s Life and Death". New York Times. 12 February 2009.
  4. ↑ Simon, Bob. "An Eye for an Eye". CBS News. 21 November 2001
  5. ↑ Stéphanie Duncan (2022): Espions, une histoire vraie. Paris, France Inter/Éditions Tallandier. ISBN 979-1-02105452-3. Chapter: Mike Harari pp. 30–39; p. 32
  6. ↑ "Palenstinian Personalities". Template:Webarchive Passia.org.
  7. ↑ "Historical Events". Template:Webarchive Passia.org.
  8. ↑ "Western countries gave Mossad information", The Guardian.
  9. ↑ Template:Cite thesis
  10. ↑ Nasr, Kameel B. Arab and Israeli Terrorism: The Causes and Effects of Political Violence, 1936–1993. McFarland & Company, 1996. Template:ISBN p. 68
  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  12. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1".
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Ronen Bergman: Rise and Kill First – The Secret History of Israel's Targeted Assassinations
  15. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  16. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

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Further reading

  • Klein, Aaron J. Striking Back: The 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre and Israel's Deadly Response. New York: Random House, Inc., 2005. Template:ISBN
  • Janet Venn-Brown (ed.) (English): For a Palestinian: A Memorial to Wael Zuaiter, 1984. Template:ISBN
  • Khalidi, Walid (1984): Before Their Diaspora: A Photographic History of the Palestinians, 1876-1948. Institute for Palestine Studies. (Has picture of Wael Zuaiter as a child with his father and brother, see also here (scroll down the page). Template:ISBN
  • Nico Perrone: In memoria di Wael e di Nablus, in il manifesto (daily), Rome, September 9, 1993.

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