Fatah’s Links to Iran
Israel recently announced its intention to release funds to the Fatah-dominated Palestinian government in the West Bank. Both the Israeli and American government want to bolster President Abbas and Fatah as a more moderate alternative to Hamas, which is viewed as being aligned with Iran. But there is concern that elements within Fatah are also linked to Iran.
A policy paper published on March 12, 2007 by former Brigadier General Shalom Harari, now a senior research scholar at the Institute for Counter-Terrorism in Israel, estimates 40 percent of Fatah’s fighting groups are funded by Iran.
There is also more direct evidence of a Fatah-Iran connection. Recall the cautionary story of the Karine-A.
On January 3, 2002, a chartered ship, the Karine-A, was intercepted by Israel on its way to delivering a large cache of weapons to the Palestinian Authority (PA) from Iran. The PA was then led by Yasir Arafat and the Fatah party. The ship contained vast supplies of explosives and missiles for use against Israeli forces and civilians.
Two months later, an Israeli raid into the Jericho prison yielded a number of documents detailing this arms deal between the PA and Iran. Some of the documents captured included lists submitted by Al-Aqsa Brigades cells itemizing ammunition needs and machinery for fabricating explosive devices.
A key player in the deal was one of Yasir Arafat’s most trusted lieutenants, Fuad al-Shobaki. The Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for Special Studies published a detailed account of the siezed documents and interview with Shobaki.
During his interrogation, Shobaki described how he was tasked by Arafat to purchase weapons using funds culled in part from aid money sent by Western donors. Shobaki admitted that many of the weapons were turned over to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.
The warning by Harari and the revelations about the Karine-A incident suggest the U.S. and Israel should exercise caution as they procede with their decision to make more funds available to Fatah.
More from SNAPSHOTS
Double Standards: Boycotts and Discrimination in MassLive
May 16, 2025
Anti-Israel activists, including Harvard University’s Lara Jirmanus, a clinical instructor, seem to struggle with the concept of “discrimination.” Quoted in a May 14 MassLive article, “Harvard ‘failed to respond’ to 450 discrimination complaints. Staff hand-delivered [...]
Swarthmore Students Are Learning: It Was Never About Palestinian Rights
May 14, 2025
Students at Swarthmore College are so close to understanding the conflict. An article in the Swarthmore Phoenix details the frustrations of student activists with the college’s Students for Justice in Palestine. The gist of their criticism is [...]
AFP Arabic Stops Mislabeling Northern Israeli Communities ‘Settlements”
August 10, 2021
A view of Metulla, northern Israel (Photo by Hadar Sela)After failing to set the record straight last May when Agence France Presse's Arabic service repeatedly referred to Jewish communities in northern Israel as "settlements," the [...]
NY Times Praises Ilhan Omar’s Book While Glossing Over Her Antisemitism
August 19, 2020
A recent New York Times book review boosts Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) autobiography while glossing over her antisemitism. In the paper’s Aug. 16, 2020 edition, NYT reporter Christina Cauterucci writes: The memoir offers breathing room [...]
When TV Interviews of Ilhan Omar Constitute Journalistic Malpractice
August 11, 2020
Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) documented animosity toward Jews and Israel was ignored in recent interviews by MSNBC and C-SPAN. MSNBC’s The Beat for July 23, 2020 included host Ari Melber’s 10-minute conversation at 6:16 [...]
Boston TV Station WCVB Teamed Up With Terrorist Supporter CAIR
July 7, 2020
WCVB-TV (channel 5) (Boston’s ABC network affiliate) recently misled area viewers about a matter involving antisemitic propaganda. This occurred on its local Sunday show Cityline hosted by Karen Holmes Ward who is described by the [...]
Harper’s Magazine Echoed Palestinian Propaganda Condemning Israel And America
June 2, 2020
Writing in Harper's, Kevin Baker condemns the U.S. Middle East peace plan [“The Striking Gesture,” Easy Chair, May 2020], mischaracterizing it as, “Give up all your [Palestinian] hopes and your holiest places, embark on a [...]