Maḥmūd Labadī

Mahmoud Labadi (; 1940–2014) was a Palestinian journalist, writer and politician who was a long-term spokesman for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). He left the post 1983 and began to work as a journalist until 1995. Then he served in different capacities for the Palestinian National Authority (PNA).

Early life and education Labadi was born in Haifa in 1940. He was named as an aide to the PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat in 1974 and remained in the post until 1983. He served as the head of the PLO’s Foreign Information Department in Lebanon between 1975 and 1982. He was appointed spokesperson of the PLO in 1975 which he held until 1983. He also acted as the liaison of the PLO leader Yasser Arafat with the American embassy in Beirut.

The PLO left Beirut in 1982, and Labadi settled briefly in Greece and then in Tunis for one year where the PLO headquarters was based. He retired from politics in 1983 and began to work in media and journalism. He also acted as the spokesperson of this dissident group.

Labadi authored three non-fiction books and two novels.

Personal life and death Labadi was a father of 4 kids. He died on 10 April 2014.