AJC Urges Obama Administration to Condemn Fatah's Glorification of Terrorist Dalal Mughrabi

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Mar 14, 2010, 12:50 ET

NEW YORK, March 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American Jewish Committee urged the Obama Administration to condemn the Palestinian Authority's ruling Fatah Party after its youth division staged a ceremony to name a square in Ramallah in honor of Dalal Mughrabi, a terrorist who led a murderous rampage which resulted in the deaths of 38 civilians in 1978. Known as the Coastal Road Attack, the assault was the single most deadly act of terrorism in Israel's history. Among the dead were 13 children and a US citizen.

"This monstrous spectacle took place while Vice President Biden was visiting the region," said AJC Executive Director David Harris. "Unfortunately, we have not heard a single word of condemnation from the U.S. Administration. While the Administration has focused its ire on Israel for clearly misguided steps taken by the Ministry of the Interior, and later apologized for by Prime Minister Netanyahu, the glorification of this terrorist sends a clear signal that Fatah, conventionally regarded as a moderate party, has no serious commitment to securing a peaceful resolution of the conflict."

At the Ramallah ceremony, Mughrabi was lauded by Tawfiq Tirawi, a Fatah Central Council member, as "a fighter who fought for the liberation of her own land." Mughrabi's victims included Gail Rubin, an American photojournalist who was the niece of former U.S. Senator Abraham Ribicoff.

SOURCE American Jewish Committee