Birth: NULL/NULL/1938 Death:NULL/NULL/NULL
Born in Salt, Jordan, in Nov. 1938, to a Greek Catholic Bedouin tribe; early education from the Al-Hussein Secondary School in Amman; joined the ANM at an early age; studied at the University of Cairo Medicine, but for political reasons ceased his studies at the university for 10 years; worked as a teacher, writer and journalist in Jordan in 1955-56; resumed his studies at, graduating with a BA in Philosophy and Psychology; later also earned a PhD from Moscow; went underground in 1959 when the ANM became persecuted in Jordan; was sentenced to death in absentia by Jordanian authorities; served as head of the ANM in Iraq until 1963 and in South Yemen from 1963-67; while in Iraq, was imprisoned for 14 months for taking part in the struggle against Abdel Karim Qassem; while in Yemen fought against British occupation and for independence (about which he published a book entitled “The Crisis of the South Yemen Revolution”); returned to Jordan after 1967 and helped found the PFLP, of which he became one of the left-wing leaders; split and formed the leftist Popular Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PDFLP; later known as DFLP) in Feb. 1969; became and remained elected DFLP Chairman as well as the DFLP’s main representative to the PNC and the PLO Exec. Committee since; fought in Sept. 1970 against Jordanian forces for which he was wanted by Jordan “dead or alive”; presented his ‘Transitional National Program’ to the PLO in 1973, calling for a two-state solution based on UN resolutions and negotiations with the Israelis; known for early attempts to reach dialogue and contact with Israeli leftist groups; in April 1974, issued the first call by a Palestinian leader to all Israelis published in Israel’s Yediot Ahronot newspaper, and other papers, such as The Washington Post, Le Soir, Le Monde and the An-Nahar; wrote several books on the Palestinian resistance movement and other issues; exchanged a historical handshake with Israeli Pres. Ezer Weizmann during the funeral of King Hussein in Feb. 1999; was involved in the inter-Palestinian dialogue on uniting Palestinian factions in Cairo in Aug. 1999; was denied entry into the OPT in 1999 after stressing the Palestinian right to resort to armed struggle as well as the right of return in an radio interview; was involved in inter-Palestinian dialogue to discuss latest developments and Palestinian unity in the last few years; has extensively written on issues related to the Palestinian cause, incl. The Palestinian Resistance and the Arab Situation (Beirut, 1964), The Crisis of the Palestinian Resistance Movement – Analysis and Forecasts (Beirut, 1969), The Crisis of the PLO: Analysis and Criticism of the Roots and Solutions (1986), Oslo and the Other Balanced Peace (Damascus/Beirut, 1999), Beyond Oslo: Palestine, Where To? (Damascus/Beirut/Ramallah, 2000), The Intifada: The Arabic-Israeli Conflict, Where To? (2001).
