Released spy praises terrorist murderers as “heroes” and “torch that lit the path”

Text and video posted on the official Fatah Facebook page; the video shows released prisoner and terrorist Sidqi Al-Maqt who committed espionage against Israel

Sidqi Al-Maqt: "Let me bow my head before the Martyr leaders in the ranks of the Palestinian revolution, and foremost among them Martyr, commander, and symbol [former PLO Chairman and PA President] Yasser Arafat who began the modern Palestinian revolution, and all of the Martyr leaders – 'Abu Jihad' Khalil Al-Wazir (i.e., terrorist, responsible for murder of 125), over whom we cried in the occupation's prisons, in the Ashkelon Prison, Abu Iyad (i.e., Salah Khalaf, terrorist responsible for murder of at least 13), and all of the leaders. Let me bless all of the heroes of the Palestinian struggle throughout Palestinian history. They have been the torch that has lit the path for us. Let me bless with a special blessing, as I cannot leave her out, heroic Martyr Dalal Mughrabi who commanded the coastal operation and stood before the enemy, this Israeli enemy, [then Israeli army commander Ehud] Barak who takes pride in his false military achievement. We say to this criminal: The Israeli people despises you, Barak, while we sing the praise of Dalal Mughrabi over the decades in the occupation's prisons, Palestine, the Golan, Syria, and everywhere. Her name will remain eternal alongside the names of all of our mighty Martyrs, the heroes of the Palestinian struggle… The enemies of Syria are the same enemies of Palestine. The conspiracy has now become clear in a way that leaves no room for doubt. Those who have conspired against Palestine are the same as those who stand behind the so-called 'deal of the century’ (i.e., US President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan; see note below)."

Al-Maqt spoke at an event in his honor at the PLO Commission of Prisoners’ Affairs.

Posted text with video: "The words of released prisoner Sidqi Al-Maqt, a son of the occupied Golan, at an event in his honor"

Sidqi Al-Maqt – Spy from the Druze and former Syrian village in the Golan Heights, Majdal Shams, who spied for Syria, providing information about the Israeli army. Al-Maqt was arrested in 1985 and served a 27-year sentence and was released, but was rearrested for espionage in 2015. Al-Maqt was sentenced to another 14 years, but was released on Jan. 10, 2020, as part of a goodwill gesture by Israel following the return of the body of Zachary Baumel, an Israeli soldier missing in action since 1982, by Russia from Syria.

Yasser Arafat – Founder of Fatah and former chairman of the PLO and PA. During the 1960s, 70s and 80s Arafat was behind numerous terror attacks against Israelis. Although he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 together with then Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and then Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Shimon Peres “for their efforts to create peace in the Middle East" after signing the Oslo Accords peace agreement, Arafat launched a 5-year terror campaign - the second Intifada (2000-2005) – in which more than 1,000 Israelis were murdered. Arafat died of an illness in 2004.

Abu Jihad (Khalil Al-Wazir) - was a founder of Fatah and deputy to Yasser Arafat. He headed the PLO terror organization's military wing and also planned many deadly Fatah terror attacks in the 1960’s - 1980’s. These attacks, in which a total of 125 Israelis were murdered, included the Coastal Road attack that (until Oct. 7, 2023) was the most lethal in Israeli history - the hijacking of a bus and murder of 37 civilians, 12 of them children.

Abu Iyad (Salah Khalaf) - PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat’s deputy, one of the founders of Fatah, and head of the terror organization Black September, a secret branch of Fatah. Attacks he planned include the murder of 11 Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics (Sept. 5, 1972) and the murder of two American diplomats in Sudan (March 1, 1973). It is commonly assumed that his assassin, a former Fatah bodyguard, was sent by the Abu Nidal Organization, a rival Palestinian faction.

Dalal Mughrabi – female Palestinian terrorist who led the attack that (until Oct. 7, 2023) was the most lethal terror attack in Israel’s history, known as the Coastal Road massacre, in 1978, when she and other Fatah terrorists hijacked a bus on Israel's Coastal Highway, murdering 37 civilians, 12 of them children, and wounding over 70. In text note: (i.e., terrorist who led murder of 37, 12 of them children)

The Trump peace plan – US President Donald Trump announced his Israel–Palestinian peace plan "Peace to Prosperity" – commonly known as “the deal of the century” - on Jan. 28, 2020. Main points of the plan: 1- Israeli sovereignty would be applied to the Jordan Valley and all Israeli towns and cities in the West Bank. 2- Jerusalem, including all its holy sites, would remain under Israeli sovereignty with accommodations made to enable access for Palestinians. 3- The remainder of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and part of what is currently Israeli land in the Negev, the Galilee, and Jerusalem - creating a territory almost equal in size to the West Bank and Gaza Strip - would form the Palestinian state, with its capital in neighborhoods in East Jerusalem that are outside of Israel's security wall. 4- The Palestinian state would be demilitarized, with Israel responsible for external security and controlling all airspace. 5- All Palestinian prisoners except murderers, and those who attempted or conspired to murder would be released. 6- Palestinians in refugee camps would be absorbed into their host countries and, subject to certain limitations, into the Palestinian state. 7- Before becoming a state, the Palestinians would have to carry out extensive reform of their laws and institutions, including implementing a new governing system; granting its people due process and basic human rights and freedoms; end all incitement to and incentivizing of terror; end all glorification of terror and martyrdom; disarm Hamas; and adopt a culture promoting peace. The goal of the plan is to create a Palestinian state beside Israel, living in peace and security. The implementation would be facilitated through extensive international investment.