For the fourth volume of terrorist group profiles we have selected several major Palestinian secular groups. Fatah (meaning "conquest"), formed by Yasser Arafat in 1958, is the largest body within the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). Currently, Fatahâ s Tanzim, Force 17, the al-Aksa Martyrs Brigades, and other affiliate groups are engaged in terrorist activities against Israel.

Two other major movements within the PLO are the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), established in 1967 by George Habash, and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), founded by Nayef Hawatmeh. Both organizations seek to liberate Palestine through an â armed struggleâ? .

The aim of this book, like the earlier volumes on al-Qaida, the ETA, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad, is not to glorify terrorist movements. Rather it is designed to provide an easily accessible reference for academics, policy makers, reporters, and other interested individuals on the most active secular Palestinian terrorists groups. This volume exposes much of their mystique and thereby places them in perspective as three of the many challenges facing the international community in the 21st century.
Published under the Transnational Publishers imprint.

Professor Yonah Alexander is a Senior Fellow and Director, International Center for Terrorism Studies, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, as well as, Director, Inter-University Center for Terrorism Studies and Co-Director, Inter University Center for Legal Studies. He has published 85 books in the field of terrorism and international affairs and is founding editor of Terrorism: An International Journal, Political Communication and Persuasion: An International Journal, and Minority and Group Rights: An International Journal.