Fatah eventually became a militant wing of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, an umbrella organisation formed in 1964. The outfit was actively involved in guerrilla raids, hijackings and other terrorist attacks against Israel.
Black September, linked to the PLO, was behind the kidnapping and killing of eleven Israeli athletes during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich.
In 1968, Arafat was elected PLO chairman and commander-in chief, making him the undisputed leader of the Palestinian movement.
Arafat greets Iraqi president Saddam Hussein in Baghdad, September 25, 1980
Photograph: /AFP/Getty Images
Also See:Orphans of Bloody Monday