An exiled member of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s mainstream Al Fatah movement returned Sunday to the Gaza Strip.
Abu Ali Shaheen, who founded Al Fatah with PLO leader Yasser Arafat, arrived from Tunis via the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza.
Shaheen, known to Palestinians as “The Ruthless,” was deported by Israel in 1988 for his role in organizing the Palestinian intifada, or uprising, that began 1987.
Crowds welcomed Shaheen to Gaza with Palestinian flags and banners.
Before leaving Egypt, Shaheen said he was planning to reorganize Al Fatah upon his return to Gaza.
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