Palestinians: A group called Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) led by Hawatmeth; its location as well as its overseas offices; its aims and objectives; activities; whether it has an armed wing; whether violence and terrorism are part of its main objectives; relationship with the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) and Chairman Arafat; its views on the peace process with Israel; whether the PNA sees the group as a "terrorist" organization (1991-1999)

For general information on the ideology, funding, support and violent activities of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), including Hawatmeh's faction, prior to 1995, please consult the attached Extremist Groups (1996, 767-772).

International Herald Tribune describes the DFLP as "a social and political body that opposes Mr. Arafat's Fatah faction. It operates openly in Syria, Lebanon and Jordan, as well as in Gaza and the West Bank" (9 Aug. 1999). AFP added that the DFLP has a media office in Gaza City since 1997 from which it publishes a newspaper (19 Feb. 1997). According to The Christian Science Monitor, the DFLP is the only militant group that has representatives inside Israel and the Palestinian territories (7 Oct. 1999).

The Hawatmeh faction is based in Damascus (AP 12 Oct. 1999; Extremist Groups 1996, 767; AFP 29 Sept. 1999)

International Herald Tribune describes the leader of the DFLP and its activities in the following terms,

In the old days, Mr. Hawatmeh, a committed leftist who was born a Greek Catholic in Salt, Jordan, led a Palestinian faction that lost 5,000 men in violence between 1965 and 1987, he said. Among the acts for which he was labeled a terrorist by Israel was the 1974 takeover of a school in the Israeli town of Maalot by his organization.

In that hostage operation, more than 20 schoolchildren were killed. Now Mr. Hawatmeh is 63, a slight man with a gentle demeanor who sits beneath a tattered banner that traces the outlines of historic Palestine and declares: ''God Bless Our Homeland'' (9 Aug. 1999). 

In a 10 January 1997 report, AFP indicated that the Lebanese authorities had arrested two Palestinians from the unified command of the DFLP and the PFLP accused of involvement in Katyusha rocket attacks on northern Israel from South Lebanon. When contacted by the AFP, both organizations denied that any of their members were arrested and denied any participation in the attacks (Ibid.).

The Website of the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School indicated that as of April 1999, the DFLP was still listed as a terrorist organization in the U.S. Department of State's Pattern of Global Terrorism, 1998. A 27 August 1998 Internet report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) entitled Terrorism: Middle Eastern Groups and State Sponsors, 1998 lists the DFLP as a Specially Designated Terrorist (SDT) group, a designation that bars U.S. dealings with any individual members of those groups. Commenting on the group's terrorist operations, the author of the report stated that when it has chosen to use terrorism, "the DFLP historically has attacked within Israel or territory under Israeli control." According to the International Herald Tribune, Mr. Hawatmeh's DFLP was an active fighting force from 1964 to 1987 (9 Aug. 1999). The group led some of the bloodiest anti-Israel attacks during the 1970s (AP 12 Oct. 1999). In an interview with Der Spiegel, Hawatmeh stated that "his organization's last attack against Israeli soldiers in the Gaza Strip was five years ago [1994]" (28 Aug. 1999). In a 7 October 1999 article, IsraelWire, a Website dedicated to the dissemination of information on Israel and the Jewish world, stated that the United States Congress is planning to announce that Nayef Hawatmeh "will be removed from the US government's terror list." No additional information on this announcement was available within the time constraint of this Response.

According to a 12 October 1999 AP report, the Israeli authorities will allow the return of DFLP leader Nayef Hawameth to the Palestinian areas because "he has expressed support for the peace process." AFP states that the DFLP originally opposed the 1993 Oslo Accord (29 Sept. 1999) and the 1998 Sarm el-Sheik Agreement (23 Oct. 1998). The request for Hawatmeh's return was made by the PNA (AP 12 Oct. 1999; AFP 29 Sept. 1999). During Jordan King Hussein's funeral, Hawatmeh shook hands with Israel's president, Ezer Weizman (AP 12 Oct. 1999; AFP 29 Sept. 1999). Hawatmeh stated that "he had shaken hands with Israeli President Ezer Weizman during the funeral of Jordan's King Hussein last February because "Weizman more than any other leading politician in Israel is ready for peace."" (DPA  28 Aug. 1999). Although this event was described by AFP as a shift in policy for the DFLP (23 Sept. 1999), an earlier report by the same news organization quoted a high ranking DFLP representative as stating that the group "was ready to back off its armed struggle against Israel and take part in the upcoming final phase of peace negotiations with the Jewish state" (19 Feb. 1997). In his document, Kenneth Katzman, the author of the CRS's Terrorism: Middle Eastern Groups and State Sponsors, 1998, stated that

The Hawatmeh faction wanted to set stringent conditions for Palestinian participation and suspended DFLP participation in the PLO following the September 1993 Israel-PLO accord. However, since 1997, Hawatmeh's DFLP has moved away from the rejectionist groups and participated in Palestinian unity talks with Arafat. In May 1998, the DFLP expressed readiness to take part in final status talks with Israel as a means of testing whether or not Israel would permit a Palestinian state. The DFLP plan calls for a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state if Israel opposes one.

For additional information on the political background surrounding the DFLP policy shift, please consult the attached AFP reports dated 23 Sept. 1999 and 19 February 1997.

According to the Middle East News Agency (MENA),

Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine Secretary-General Nayif Hawatimah has stated that the DFLP'S current dialogue with Fatah and the Palestinian [National] Authority [PNA] seeks to overcome the negative aspects of the Oslo agreements and the step-by-step policy in order to move towards comprehensive negotiations based on UN resolutions while maintaining that the PLO is the final authority on this matter (23 Aug. 1999).

In a 27 September 1999 report, the Amman-based Jordan Times stated that the DFLP has opted for dialogue with the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). According to the Middle East Times, Chairman Arafat "set aside differences with the leader of another Syrian-based group, Nayef Hawatmeh" (Oct. 1999). The meeting between the two leaders was held in Cairo "as part of Arafat's efforts to reconcile with his opponents" (AFP 29 Sept. 1999). Quoting Hawatmeh, MENA stated that the Cairo meeting was "the product of earlier rounds of dialogue that revealed that there is a large area of common ground between the two groups, which is, however, incomplete" (24 Aug. 1999). In the meeting's final communiqué,

Arafat and Hawatmeh called for ''national reconciliation'' and inclusive talks with the goal of ''crystalizing'' a Palestinian position prior to final negotiations. It also called for the Palestinian National Council to study the possibility of holding a referendum on any peace agreement (The Gazette  24 Aug. 1999).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

Agence France Presse (AFP) [Paris, in English]. 29 September 1999. "Palestinians Seek Entry for Opposition Leader: Israel." (NEXIS)

_____. 23 October 1998. "West Bank and Gaza Strip: Palestinian Opposition Warns of Violence After Accord." (FBIS-NES-98-296  26 Oct. 1998/WNC)

_____. 19 February 1997. "PFLP Ready to Join Negotiations With Israel." (FBIS-NES-97-033

_____. 10 January 1997. "Lebanon: Palestinians Arrested for Role in Katyusha Attacks." (FBIS-TOT-97-012-L10 Jan. 1997/WNC)

Associated Press (AP). 12 October 1999. Laurie Copans. "Israel to Let Militant Return."< http://www.newsday.com/ap/rnmpin16.htm >  [Accessed on 12 Oct. 1999]

The Christian Science Monitor [Boston]. 7 October 1999. Scott Peterson. "Hard-Line Arabs Reject Hints of Mideast Thaw." Internet. < wysiwig://301/http://

www.csmonitor.com/durable/1999/06/29/text/p8s1.html > [Accessed on 7 Oct. 1999]

Congressional Research Service Issue Brief. 27 August 1998. Kenneth Katzman. Terrorism: Middle Eastern Groups and State Sponsors, 1998. Internet. < http://www.fas.org./irp/crs/Cterror2.htm > [Accessed on 7 Oct. 1999]

Deutsche Presse-Agentur. 28 August 1999. "DFLP Leader Says "We Want Peace With Israel" But Not on Oslo Basis." (NEXIS)

IsraelWire. 7 October 1999. "DFLP Being Removed from US Terror List." Internet.< http://www.israelwire.com > [Accessed on 7 Oct. 1999]

The Gazette [Montréal]. 24 August 1999. Hugh Dellios. "Arafat, Rival Set Aside Differences: Palestinians Closing Ranks Before Final Mideast Peace Negotiations." (NEXIS)

International Herald Tribune [Neuilly-sur-Seine]. "Palestinians Rebels in Syria: Wild Card in Talks." (NEXIS)

Jordan Times [Amman, in English]. 27 September 1999. Saad Hattar. "PNA, PFLP to Resume Dialogue in Amman Tuesday." (FBIS-NES-1999-0927

Middle East Times [Cairo]. October 1999. "PFLP Radical Returns, Raises Refugee Issue." Internet. < http://metimes.com/issue99-40/reg/pflp_radical_returns.htm > [Accessed on 8 Oct. 1999]

Middle East News Agency (MENA). "DFLP Leader Hawatimah Comments on Cairo Meeting with Fatah." (NEXIS)

Naval Postgraduate School, Dudley Knox Library. N.d. "Terrorist Group Profiles." Internet. < http://web.nps.navy.mil/~library/tgp/dflp.htm > [Accessed on 7 Oct. 1999]

Agence France Presse (AFP) [Paris, in English]. 23 September 1999. "Palestinian Group's Condition for Talks With Israel." (FBIS-NES-1999-0923  26 Sept. 1999/WNC)

Extremist Groups: An International Compilation of Terrorist Organizations, Violent Political groups, and Issue-Oriented Militant Movements. 1996. Edited by John Murray and Richard H. Ward. Chicago: Office of  International Criminal Justice, pp. 767-772.