Palestinian activist who hijacked planes to fly to Australia for a speech

A Palestinian ‘terrorist’ who hijacked two planes and branded Hamas soldiers responsible for the October 7 attacks as ‘freedom fighters’ could be coming to Australia.

Leila Khaled has been listed as a keynote speaker at the Ecosocialism event in Perth in June, organized by the Socialist Alliance and Green Left.

However, members of the Jewish Australian community have called for her to be banned from entering Australia due to her complicated history as a prominent member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

The now elderly woman is still a member of the extremist Marxist group known for hijacking planes, murders and suicide bombings.

The PFLP is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union and Canada, while Australia has imposed financial sanctions on the group.

The Australian Jewish Association condemned Ms Khaled’s appearance on Ecosocialism in a tweet on Monday.

‘What a great illustration of the fusion of hard-left politics and radical ‘Palestinian’ activism [and] terrorism, in this case aircraft hijacking,” the report said.

The PFLP rose to worldwide prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s as a result of a series of aircraft hijackings and bombings.

Ms. Khaled was involved in at least two of the group’s hijackings.

In 1969, she helped hijack Trans World Airlines Flight 840, which was traveling from Rome, Italy, to Tel Aviv, Israel, because the group believed the Israeli ambassador to the United States was on board.

No one was injured in the attack, but the hijackers blew up the nose of the plane.

Ms. Khaled was involved in a second hijacking a year later when she attempted to hijack El Al Flight 219 from Amsterdam, Netherlands, to New York City, United States.

She, together with another co-hijacker, threatened to detonate grenades in the plane if the pilot did not allow them into the cockpit.

Gunshots were fired and the plane nosedived before landing.

The Sydney Morning Herald claims the Albanian government has indicated it will not allow Ms Khaled to enter Australia.

In a statement to Daily Mail Australia, a government spokesperson said they were “aware of this matter.”

‘The Migration Act is clear. “All people applying for visas, wherever they come from, are required to undergo security checks – as has been the case under all governments,” they said.

“The government cannot comment on individual cases.”

Ecosocialism organizers have stated that if Ms Khaled is refused entry into Australia, she will still be invited to speak at the conference via video chat.

The Ecosocialism 2024 website describes Ms Khaled as an “iconic Palestinian revolutionary activist, member of the national committee of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and a representative in the Palestinian National Council.”

The government spokesman warned Ms Khaled could be prosecuted if she is found to be inciting terrorism in Australia, even if she speaks from another country.

A government spokesperson warned that Ms Khaled (pictured) could be prosecuted if she is found to be inciting terrorism in Australia, even while speaking from another country

‘Promoting terrorism is a criminal offence [under] Section 80.2 of the Criminal Code,” they said.

“The offense of advocating terrorism may apply even if the person is overseas, provided the consequence of the conduct occurs in Australia. As such, it may even apply if a person appears online rather than in person in Australia.

‘In addition, the Albanian government’s banned symbols legislation, which came into force last month, makes it an offense under Commonwealth law to glorify or praise acts of terrorism.’

More to come.