Special to JTA Arabs in Germany Active in Underground

Ten Arab and Palestinian terrorist organizations are active in West Germany, political circles here stated today. Some 3,000 of the 27,000 Arabs now living in West Germany are either members of these bodies or help them in one way or the other, the circles said. The “contacts” of the men who recently hijacked the Lufthansa jumbo jet are also to be found among these Arabs, and most probably still live under Bonn’s jurisdiction, these circles added.

One of the largest reservoirs of Arab terrorist manpower in West Germany is the Maoist “Union of Arab Students” which has 11 branches throughout Germany. Officially, their membership is only 150 but more Arab young men are associated with them. Slightly larger is the “Arab Students Organization” with a total membership of 300. This organization has 15 branches throughout Germany. Another Maoist organization is the “General Union of Libyan Students.”

Among the outright terrorist organizations are the “Popular Front for the Liberation of the Occupied Territories in the Arab Gulf” which has a terrorist brigade active in West Berlin, and the “National Union of Popular Forces,” a Moroccan anti-monarchist movement, also very active among students. The biggest Arab movement by far is the El Fatah, with 1,500 members and supporters throughout Germany. It is active in 23 German localities. It influences the 27 branches of the “General Union of Palestinian Students.”

There is also a “General Union of Palestinian Workers” whose 24 German branches are likewise under Fatah influence. The “Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine” (PFLP), which is directed by Dr. George Habash, was declared an illegal organization two years ago during the great airplane scare. It is, however, still active in Germany. Some 120 Arabs are presently in West German jails, 33 of them in West Berlin jails alone. Not all of them are connected with political offenses. The Arab organizations and the clandestine Palestinian groups are reported to be in close contact with the German “New Left” and Arab embassies.

After the hijacking of the Lufthansa jet, West German Minister of Transport, George Leber, stated that never before did he feel such a fury. The German Cabinet has given instructions to the intelligence services and the detective forces to root out terrorists from among the Arabs living in Germany. This gives some credence to the belief within German political circles that it is this shadow-army of the Arab underground which will feel the brunt of the Minister’s fury.