Mahmoud Hamchari

Mahmoud Hamshari (; 29 August 1939 – 9 January 1973) was a Palestinian official who was assassinated by the Israeli Mossad in Paris, France, on 8 December 1972. He was serving as the representative of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to France when the incident occurred. He died in a Paris hospital on 9 January 1973.

Early life and education Hamshari was born in a village, Umm Khaled, west of Tulkarm, on 29 August 1939.

Pedagogic career and activism Hamshari worked as a teacher in Kuwait and Algeria. There he founded a branch of the General Union of Palestinian Students. Through the Union, Hamshari organized the visit of the Swiss film director Jean-Luc Godard to Jordan and Lebanon where he met with the Palestinian fighters in 1969.

Personal life Hamshari was married to a French woman, Marie-Claude, and they had a daughter, Amina.

Assassination Following the killing of Israeli Olympic team members by the Black September Organization in Munich in September 1972, Israel assassinated several leading Palestinian figures. Aharon Yariv, then serving as the prime minister's advisor on counterterrorism, He was treated at the Cochin Hospital but lost his leg in the attack.

Aftermath The following day, Arab diplomats in Paris organized a three-hour press conference and warned that the French government was responsible for their well-being. Israel also launched an information campaign via Western media outlets such as Agence France-Presse and BBC. According to Israel, Hamshari was injured while making an explosive device at his home.

After the assassination of Hamshari, the PLO intensified its attacks on Israelis on the orders of Ali Hassan Salameh. The first attack was carried out by Black September in Thailand in an attempt to take the Israeli ambassador hostage.

Legacy In 1973, the Palestine-Mahmoud Hamshari Prize was established in his memory by L'Association de Solidarite Franco Arabe and the magazine France Pays Arabes. A primary school for girls in Tulkarm also bears his name.

In popular culture Anton Shammas's 1986 novel Arabesques mentions Hamshari's grave in the Père Lachaise cemetery.

Hamshari is one of the characters in Steven Spielberg's 2005 film Munich. He was portrayed by Igal Naor in the film.