Japanese Red Army Militant Kozo Okamoto Dies in Beirut

Kozo Okamoto, a Japanese militant and member of the Japanese Red Army, died Thursday in Beirut at the age of 78. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine announced his death, noting that he had been ill for a long time.

Okamoto gained international notoriety for his role in a May 30, 1972, attack on Tel Aviv's international airport. In a joint operation with the PFLP, Okamoto and two colleagues used rifles and grenades to kill 26 people and wound dozens. The PFLP characterized the strike as retaliation for a 1968 Israeli commando raid on Beirut's international airport. While his accomplices died during the assault, Okamoto was wounded and subsequently served 12 years in an Israeli prison.

Following a 1985 prisoner exchange, Okamoto moved to Lebanon. Despite repeated extradition demands from the Government of Japan, the Government of Lebanon granted him political asylum, making him the first person to receive such status in the country. Within the PFLP, he was known as Ahmad al-Yabani, or Ahmad the Japanese. During his Lebanese trial, he described himself as an Arab resistance fighter.