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Terror in Black September: The First Eyewitness Account of the Infamous 1970 Hijackings

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One of the more successful disinformation coups of our time was the depiction by Yasir Arafat and the Palestinian resistance groups of their eviction from the Kingdom of Jordan in September 1970 as a "treacherous massacre" by King Hussein and his loyal army. Almost erased from history is the fact that the undisciplined fedayeen (as the resistance fighters were called) brought the action on themselves after establishing a state within the state in Jordan that defied all government authority and was a constant threat to peace and public safety. The civil war (and the subsequent Syrian invasion of Jordan) was touched off by the daring hijacking of four civil airliners by terrorist agents of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, one of whom was a strikingly beautiful woman, Leila Khalid. Her hijacking attempt was the only failure; an Israeli sky marshal shot and wounded her companion, and the pilot of the El Al airliner threw the plane into a dive that sent Leila sprawling so that passengers and another sky marshal could subdue her. The author of this excellently researched, first-person narrative, David Raab, was a teenage passenger on one of the three airliners that were forced down at an abandoned airfield in Jordan. He has used his diary from the incident as a thread for a detailed account of the entire episode (which Henry Kissinger later claimed had brought the US and the USSR close to nuclear war). He draws on interviews with passengers and crewmembers who were held captive with him, and uses contemporary news accounts and post-incident articles to present a riveting story and, incidentally, to set the record straight on who was really responsible for "Black September."Terror in Black September: The First Eyewitness Account of the Infamous 1970 Hijackings

Terror in Black September: The First Eyewitness Account of the Infamous 1970 Hijackings
While some of the descriptions are somewhat uneven in their readability & style, the accounts of what was happening in the behind-the-scenes negotiations in Berne, Switzerland are very interesting. These meetings between the countries whose citizens had been hijacked on 3 airplanes illustrate how the countries dealt with the terrorists. Leila Kaleid was one of the Palestineans in a British jail who was released, & the head of the PLFP, responsible for planning these hijackings, recently died. So even though these events took place 30+ years ago, the story is relevant today.

Well written, well documented, and an authoritative explanation of the sources of terrorism. Highly recommended.

I was amazed at the level of detail supporting the hostages' point of view narrative. The personal recollections astounded me as to how people could remain so calm for so many days under the terrible and threatening conditions. I would have liked to have known more of what the participants are doing today.

In this fast paced book that jumps from Washington to the streets of Amman the month of September, 1970, plays out with the hijecking of four planes on the same day and the ordeal of the hostages and the Jordanian civil war as background. Partly based on the diaries of one of the hostages and interviews with others as well as accounts of the backroom dealings of the Red Cross and the Jordanian government, this is one of the best accounts of what has become known as Black September.

However the book suffers from two general weaknesses. It is far too fast paced for most readers. Jumping back and forth between setings, sometimes on the same page, leaves the reader exhausted and searching for some cohesion. In addition the descriptions of what is going on in the general contaxt, for instance King Hussien's decision to fight the PLO, is only marginally well written and provides little understanding or context, whereas the narrative of the hostages is far better.

This was one of the most fascinating stories, of the terrorists such as Leila Khaled, and of the times, and of the Civil War in Jordan in which a plucky king confronted a viscous gang of terrorists. But this book does not entirely do it justice. Nevertheless it is one of the few book length accounts on the subject.

One migth be dismayed to see the author enjoying a coffee at the end with one of his former captors as if it was all a joke and this may leave a sour taste in the mouth regarding moral relativism and terrorism.

Seth J. Frantzman

David Raab's engrossing account of the 1970 airline hijackings gives the reader the vicarious experience of what it was like to be a hostage with David and his family. It also reveals the behind the scenes negotiations and diplomatic maneuvering that took place. I highly recommend this fascinating story to those who have an interest in the middle east and the origins of terrorism.