Yasir Arafat


Arafat, Yasir

 

(partisan name, Abu Amar). Born 1929 in Jerusalem. Figure in the Palestinian resistance movement.

In 1953, Arafat graduated from the University of Cairo, where he had been trained as a civil engineer. From 1952 to 1956 he was chairman of the League of Palestinian Students. As an officer in the Egyptian Army he saw combat during the Anglo-French-Israeli aggression against Egypt (Suez crisis) in 1956. He helped found the Palestine National Liberation Movement (al-Fatah) in the 1950’s and eventually became its leader. In February 1969 he became chairman of the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization.