Cold Open

It’s just after 4:30 AM, on September 5th, 1972 at the Olympic Village in Munich, West Germany where the Olympic Games are underway.

40-year-old Yossef Gutfreund is sleeping in a shared apartment when the sound of someone jostling their doorknob wakes him up. The 6 foot 3 Israeli wrestling referee climbs out of bed, careful not to wake other members of the Israeli Olympic team sleeping in a nearby room.

As Yossef trudges across the apartment, his eyes adjust to the dark, just in time to see the knob turn and door begin to creep open. Then terror overtakes him as he sees the barrel of an assault rifle poke through the entrance. Before the armed trespassers can enter though, Yossef shouts a warning to the others and slams the door shut with all his strength. As Yossef fights to keep the invaders out of the apartment, his roommate and Israeli wrestling coach, Tuvia Sokolovsky, is awakened by the scuffle. He shouts at the others to wake up.

But before his roommates can help him, Yossef feels the door give way. The gunmen wedge their rifles into the opening and force their way inside.

Yossef is knocked to the ground. He scrambles away from the gunmen, trying to get back to his feet, but realizes he is backing himself into a corner.

From across the apartment, a window shatters, as Tuvia tries to find an escape.

The gunmen swing their attention to the broken window and fire, but Tuvia is able to leap out unharmed. Then, the gunmen level their rifles at Yossef again, who realizes he has no way to get to the window to follow Tuvia, or past the gunmen to the door. There is no escape. So slowly, Yoseff raises his shaking arms in surrender.

Less than three decades after the end of World War II, the 1972 Munich Olympic Games represented a chance for West Germany to step out of the shadow of Nazism. The organizers billed the event as “The Games of Peace and Joy.” But in an attempt to create a welcoming atmosphere, security at the Games will turn out to be overly lax.

In a space of less than 30 minutes, nine members of the Israeli Olympic delegation will be taken hostage. Two others will be shot dead after they attempt to fight off their captors. The terrorists who pull off this brazen attack are members of a Palestinian group known as Black September. Seeking the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, they will use the Olympics as an occasion to draw the world’s attention to their cause. But their goals will not be realized. Instead, their actions will culminate only in tragedy and bloodshed after they take members of the Israeli Olympic team hostage on September 5th, 1972.

Introduction

From Noiser and Airship, I’m Lindsay Graham and this is History Daily.

History is made every day. On this podcast—every day—we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world.

Today is September 5th, 1972: The Munich Olympics Massacre.

Act One: Negotiations

It’s a little before 9 AM, on September 5th, 1972, outside the apartment building where Black September commandos are holding 9 Israeli hostages.

Munich police chief Manfred Schreiber steps cautiously toward the building’s ground floor. He is joined by two members of the International Olympic Committee. He hopes that together they can convince the terrorists to release their hostages. But there isn’t much time.

When police first arrived a little after 5 AM, this morning, the Black September members dropped leaflets bearing their demands. Police tried to order them to surrender. But the Black September commandos responded by throwing the dead body of one of the Israelis who tried to fight them into the street.

After demonstrating how deadly serious they are, the terrorists made their ultimatum clear: they want more than 200 prisoners released from Israeli jails, as well as two members of an allied German terrorist gang, freed from a German prison. They set a deadline for 9 AM. And if their demands are not met by then, they claimed they would be executing their hostages. Now with the deadline just minutes away, Manfred prays he and the other negotiators can talk sense into the leader of the Black September crew.

As Manfred and the other negotiators approach the building, the leader of the Black September terrorists, a man identified as Issa, steps out of the building. Issa wears a white suit and has black paint covering his face. He holds a grenade in his hand menacingly as he repeats the same demands as before. As Issa speaks, Manfred is struck by his fanaticism. He grows skeptical that he can reason with the terrorist, but right now, there is no alternative.

Manfred listens to Issa carefully. He tries to convey calm and understanding. And then, he steps aside for his colleague, Ahmed El-Demerdash Touny, to speak. Ahmed is an Egyptian member of the International Olympic Committee. And Manfred hopes that perhaps Issa will respond better to a fellow Middle Easterner.

Ahmed speaks in a quiet tone. He explains that the Israeli and German governments are taking Issa’s demands seriously, but they need more time to locate and free the prisoners. Issa nods and curtly agrees to extend the deadline. Israel and West Germany have until noon. It’s only three more hours, but Manfred breathes a sigh of relief. They’ve managed to avert further violence, and just in time.

But as negotiations continue, Manfred’s job only becomes more difficult. He and other negotiators plead with the terrorists to surrender. They offer them unlimited sums of money, free transport back to Palestine, any number of alternate arrangements. But each idea is turned down. Issa is adamant. The hostages will only be released once his comrades are free.

Around 11:15 AM, as the noon deadline looms, Manfred receives word from the Israeli government that they will not negotiate. The Israeli prime minister explains that if they give in to Black September’s demands, Israelis will be vulnerable to similar attacks wherever they go. Israel makes it clear to West Germany that they will not release the Palestinian prisoners under any circumstances. The negotiations are now solely in West Germany’s hands.

So just before noon, Manfred and Ahmed meet with Issa once more. They are desperate for more time. Manfred knows that the Israelis have no plans to acquiesce to Black September’s requests. But if he tells Issa that, he’s almost certain the hostages will die. So Manfred lies. He pleads for more time explaining that the Israelis are trying to track down the prisoners, but it's taking longer than expected. After Manfred and Ahmed make their case, Issa extends the deadline once more, but only by an hour. He also issues a warning. If there is no sign that prisoners are being released, he’ll kill two more of the hostages.

But after the next deadline passes, Issa does not follow through on his threat. In fact, Manfred and others get Issa to extend the deadline again and again. But as the day drags on, tensions increase and both sides grow weary. High-level German officials and ambassadors from Arab countries join in the negotiations. Multiple alternatives are proposed, but Issa turns them all down. 

Then around 5 PM, as the latest deadline nears, the Germans attempt a rescue. A group of police officers dressed in tracksuits surround the apartment building. But as they await the order to attack, their every move is being broadcast on live television. Manfred realizes it's too late. Tipped off to the officers’ presence, Issa suddenly bursts out of the building. He orders the police to withdraw their forces or he’ll kill hostages immediately. Manfred aborts his plan and the negotiations resume once more. But both sides are running out of patience, and soon negotiations take a turn.

Privately, Issa accepts that his ultimatum is not being respected. While they murdered two Israelis during the start of their operation, Black September’s orders were to keep their hostages alive. If their demands were not met, their next directions were to secure a plane and safe passage to Egypt for themselves and their hostages. And Issa makes this new request known.

With tensions high, the Germans will agree. But they will have no intention of really helping the terrorists escape. Instead, they plan to ambush the Black September members at the airport and free the Israeli hostages. But the German plan will be deeply flawed. And their rescue attempt will end in a massacre.

Act Two: Botched Raid

It’s almost 11 PM, on September 5th, at an airfield just outside Munich.

The Black September terrorist known as Issa steps out of a helicopter and onto the tarmac. Not far away is a Boeing 727 jet.

As Issa walks toward the plane, he’s on edge. It’s been six hours since Black September had to abort their original demands. But at least their backup plan seems to be working out. The Black September terrorists and their hostages have arrived at an airfield about 15 miles away.

But what Issa doesn’t realize is that the Germans have an ambush planned. They’ve set up snipers to take down the terrorists before they can escape. But the Germans’ scheme is faulty. They’ve prepared for five terrorists when there are actually eight. Their snippers are ill-equipped, with no way to get a clear shot of their targets and no way to communicate with each other. But Issa is unaware of the German plan or its defects. His attention is focused on the plane meant to take him and his hostages safely to Egypt.

Still, Issa can’t help but feel a growing sense of dread. The jet suggests that the Germans are cooperating, but he senses something is off. And he and his fellow terrorists are under clear orders. If they are not allowed to leave West Germany as planned, they must fight to the death.

Issa and his second-in-command walk toward the 727 to inspect it. Climbing into the plane’s cabin, his suspicions are confirmed. The plane is empty. There are no police, soldiers, or other dangers. But there is no crew either. The plane is not intended to take him or his hostages anywhere.

Issa rushes down the plane’s stairs and yells across the tarmac to the members of his team. Then, shots ring out. Issa watches as two of his men fall to the ground before more shots are fired. One bullet narrowly misses Issa and hits the runway near his feet. Another shot hits his second-in-command in the leg. It feels like there’s gunfire coming from every direction. But Issa and his men are prepared to fight. They fall back toward the helicopter and fire back at the Germans. Within seconds, the airfield descends into chaos.

One German police officer is shot and killed. The helicopter crew flees for cover and barely escapes. One Palestinian terrorist is shot in the hand and another in the chest. And soon a stalemate ensues. The German fire occasionally. But they don’t have a good vantage point. Each time they take a shot, the Palestinian terrorists fire back.

Eventually, the Germans called for reinforcements. But the area around the airport is surrounded by onlookers, and the armored cars the Germans request get stuck in traffic. They don’t arrive at the airfield until over an hour after the ambush on the terrorists began. When the armored cars do approach, the terrorists realize a new onslaught is impending. And before they can be trapped, they spring into action.

One of the Palestinians opens fire on four hostages. Then he tosses a grenade into the helicopter where other hostages are tied up.

Meanwhile, Issa steps out from where he’s taken cover. He fires again at the Germans, but they fire back and find their mark. Issa and another Black September member are shot and killed.

As Issa falls to the ground, the grenade explodes in the other helicopter. Igniting the fuel tank and sending a huge fireball into the air, killing all Israelis inside. Then another terrorist turns his machine gun on the remaining five captives.

The shootout continues with the surviving terrorists continuing their standoff as long as possible. But at around 12:30 AM, the firing finally stops. Three Palestinians are arrested — the only survivors of their 8-person crew. The other five members of Black September have already been shot and killed. One German officer was also killed and two others hurt in friendly fire. All nine Israeli hostages were murdered. The rescue attempt has failed.

But news of the tragedy reaches the public slowly. In fact, at first, a false rumor spreads that all of the hostages were freed. It’s only after several hours of misinformation that the media gets the true story. And in the early hours of September 6th, the news reports that the worst has happened.

The following morning, the Olympic Committee will hold a memorial for the 11 murdered Israelis. They will attempt to turn the page on the horrifying events of the past 24 hours. But their efforts to pull the Olympics out of the shadows of the massacre will fall short, leaving many angry and hurt.

Act Three: The Games Must Go On

It’s the morning of September 6th, 1972, at the Olympic Stadium in Munich.

Shmuel Lalkin, the leader of the Israeli Olympic delegation sits surrounded by other members of the Israeli Olympic squad. They are joined by 8,000 fellow athletes and tens of thousands of spectators. The crowd has gathered this morning to pay tribute to the murdered members of the Israeli Olympic team.

When Black September first claimed their hostages, the Olympic organizers initially refused to put the games on pause. But this decision prompted widespread criticism, so eventually, they gave in and the games halted for a day, with plans to restart after a peaceful resolution.

But after the bloodbath at the airfield, there’s pressure to cancel the games all altogether. Still, many hope that the spirit of the Olympics can prevail after this morning’s memorial. Shmuel prepares to convey a similar message while honoring his fallen countrymen.

As he walks to the podium, Shmuel can feel the thousands of eyes in the stadium and the millions watching him on television. The stadium is quiet, except for the sound of sobbing.

Shmuel looks out at the crowd. His voice is heavy with grief, but he fights to communicate courage and a commitment to the Olympic spirit, vowing that Israeli athletes will continue to participate in the Olympic games. As he concludes his remarks, although he feels sorrow, Shmuel hopes that he has made a stand on behalf of his people against terrorism.

After this memorial, the Olympic Committee holds a meeting. They decide that the games must go on. But the decision draws strong reactions. Some maintain that finishing the games represents perseverance in the face of terrorism. Others feel it is disrespectful to the memory of the dead. Nevertheless, after 24 hours, the games do resume.

But the tragedy in Munich will have lasting repercussions. Just weeks after the Olympics, Palestinian terrorists will stage another hijacking to free the three Black September members that survived the Munich attack. After West Germany releases the prisoners, some will allege that the country collaborated with Black September in an attempt to wash its hands of the Munich massacre. For its part, Israel will launch an operation to find and kill members of Black September involved in the planning and execution of the Munich attack, an operation that will go on for decades.

Before the horrific hostage crisis unfolded, the Olympic Committee had high hopes for the Munich Olympics. It was meant to be a clean break from the Nazism that defined the 1936 Berlin Olympics. It was also intended to be a celebration of sport and camaraderie above all else. But the idea that politics and war would not intrude on the Olympics was misguided. Even once Black September seized the Olympics stage for their cause, Olympic organizers fought to keep the spotlight on sports. But the so-called “Games of Peace and Joy” will likely always be remembered as the Olympics of Terror, forever linked to the murder of 11 members of the Israeli Olympic team who were taken hostage on September 5th, 1972.

Outro

Next on History Daily. September 6th, 1966. The Prime Minister of the Republic of South Africa, and the chief architect of apartheid, is assassinated.

From Noiser and Airship, this is History Daily, hosted, edited, and executive produced by me, Lindsay Graham.

Audio editing by Muhammed Shahzaib.

Sound design by Mollie Baack.

Music by Lindsay Graham.

This episode is written and researched by Ruben Abrahams Brosbe.

Executive Producers are Alexandra Currie-Buckner for Airship, and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.