Yasser Arafat Elected Chairman of Palestinian Liberation Organization
Fatah leader takes control of PLO, signaling shift toward armed resistance and guerrilla warfare against Israel.
CAIRO - Yasser Arafat was elected chairman of the Palestinian Liberation Organization’s Executive Committee today, marking a dramatic shift in Palestinian strategy toward armed resistance against Israel.
The 39-year-old Fatah leader’s election at the Fifth Palestinian National Congress represents the guerrilla organizations’ takeover of the PLO from traditional politicians. Arafat replaces Yahya Hammuda, who briefly succeeded Ahmad Shukeiri.
“The armed struggle is the only way to liberate Palestine,” Arafat declared to delegates. “We will continue our revolution until victory, until we pray in Jerusalem.”
Arafat’s rise follows Fatah’s growing prestige after the Battle of Karameh last year, which transformed Palestinian guerrillas into folk heroes across the Arab world. His organization now dominates the PLO’s governing bodies.
The congress amended the Palestinian National Charter to emphasize armed struggle, rejecting political solutions. The new leadership views the gun, not diplomacy, as the path to liberation.
“We are not terrorists, we are freedom fighters,” Arafat insisted, wearing his trademark keffiyeh arranged to resemble historic Palestine. “Every revolution faces this accusation from its oppressors.”
Israel’s government dismissed the leadership change. “Changing faces doesn’t change the PLO’s terrorist nature,” Defense Minister Moshe Dayan commented. “We will continue striking at terror wherever it operates.”
Arafat faces immediate challenges. Operating from Jordan, the fedayeen increasingly clash with King Hussein’s authority. Lebanon and Syria also host Palestinian guerrillas, creating complex relationships with Arab governments.
The new chairman’s background remains partly mysterious. Born in Cairo or Gaza (accounts differ), trained as an engineer, he founded Fatah in Kuwait in 1959 with other Palestinian professionals. His nom de guerre “Abu Ammar” has become synonymous with Palestinian resistance.
Under Arafat’s leadership, the PLO is expected to escalate international operations, seeking to globalize the Palestinian struggle. This strategy risks alienating potential supporters but aims to prevent the world from ignoring Palestinian claims.
The election represents a generational shift from traditional Arab politics to revolutionary activism, with profound implications for the conflict’s future trajectory.