Police Arrests in Munich-Riem on 17 February 1970

Munich Airport (Riem) was once again the scene of terrorist activity. Thanks to the alertness of an airline employee, three Arab men were arrested in a lounge at the airport on 17 February 1970. During a stopover of their flight to Belgrade, they left the aircraft in Munich. Walking through the empty rows, a crew member discovered handguns and ammunition in the jackets and coats the men had left behind on their seats. The three were members of the Palestinian “Action Organisation for the Liberation of Palestine” who had presumably planned to hijack the plane.

At the end of April 1970, the three perpetrators were deported to Beirut. The Munich District Court had sentenced them each to three months in prison for violating the firearms law and an offence against the Air Traffic Act. The sentence was partially served in police custody and in detention while awaiting trial, the remainder of the sentence being suspended on probation.