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Sabena aircraft at Lod International Airport, Tel Aviv, captured by Palestinians

The Lod Airport massacre was a terrorist attack that occurred on 30 May 1972. Three members of the Japanese Red Army recruited by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), attacked...

The Lod Airport massacre was a terrorist attack that occurred on 30 May 1972. Three members of the Japanese Red Army recruited by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), attacked Lod Airport (now Ben Gurion International Airport) near Tel Aviv, killing 26 people and injuring 80 others. Two of the attackers were killed, while a third, Kōzō Okamoto, was captured after being wounded.

The dead comprised 17 Christian pilgrims from Puerto Rico, a Canadian citizen, and eight Israelis, including Professor Aharon Katzir, an internationally renowned protein biophysicist. Katzir was head of the Israeli National Academy of Sciences, a popular scientific radio show host, and a candidate in the upcoming Israeli presidential election.

Historical Significance

The Lod Airport massacre was a terrorist attack that occurred on 30 May 1972.

Events Before

  1. Cigarette advertisements are banned from broadcast media in the US

    Cigarette advertisements are banned from broadcast media in the US

  2. 1st "Quickie" Divorce granted in UK

    1st "Quickie" Divorce granted in UK

  3. Tamla Records releases Marvin Gaye's single "What's Going On" about police brutality, from the album of the same name

    What's Going On is the eleventh studio album by the American soul singer Marvin Gaye. It was released on May 21, 1971, by the Motown Records subsidiary label Tamla.

  4. Military coup in Uganda led by Major General Idi Amin

    Idi Amin Dada Oumee (30 May 1928 – 16 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until his overthrow in 1979.

  5. General Idi Amin ousts Milton Obote and appoints himself President and Dictator of Uganda

    Idi Amin Dada Oumee (30 May 1928 – 16 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 until his overthrow in 1979.

Events After

  1. Britain, Ireland, and Denmark become the 7th, 8th, and 9th members of the European Economic Community

    Denmark is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark, also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that...

  2. Elvis Presley files for divorce from Priscilla Presley on his 38th birthday

    Elvis Presley files for divorce from Priscilla Presley on his 38th birthday

  3. Actress Jane Fonda weds activist Tom Hayden

    Jane Seymour Fonda is an American actress and activist. Fonda's work spans several genres and over six decades of film and television.

  4. In a landmark decision, the US Supreme Court legalizes most abortions (Roe v. Wade). Writing the majority opinion, Justi

    In a landmark decision, the US Supreme Court legalizes most abortions (Roe v. Wade). Writing the majority opinion, Justice Harry Blackmun states that the criminalization of abortion does not have "roots in the English common law tradition."

  5. US President Richard Nixon announces an accord has been reached to end the Vietnam War

    Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1974.

More from the 1970s

death

Erroll Garner dies

Erroll Garner dies

birth

Chai Jing is born

Chai Jing, Chinese journalist and environmental activist, known for chinese journalist and environmental activist, was born on 1976-01-01. Chai Jing is a Chinese journalist.

Charles "Chub" Feeney becomes the President of Major League Baseball's National League

Charles Stoneham "Chub" Feeney (August 31, 1921 – January 10, 1994) was an Irish-American front office executive in Major League Baseball.

Cigarette advertisements are banned from broadcast media in the US

Cigarette advertisements are banned from broadcast media in the US

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on May 8, 1972?
The Lod Airport massacre was a terrorist attack that occurred on 30 May 1972. Three members of the Japanese Red Army recruited by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), attacked Lod Airport (now Ben Gurion International Airport) near Tel Aviv, killing 26 people and injuring 80 others. Two of the attackers were killed, while a third, Kōzō Okamoto, was captured after being wounded.
Why is Sabena aircraft at Lod International Airport, Tel Aviv, captured by Palestinians significant?
The Lod Airport massacre was a terrorist attack that occurred on 30 May 1972.

Explore More

May 8 in HistoryYear 1972