For the first time since it happened, a moment of silence was observed during the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics in honor of the Israeli athletes murdered by a group of Palestinian terrorists.
LISTEN TO TODAY’S PODCAST:
During the 1972 games in Munich, eight members of the Palestinian terrorist group Black September killed two Israeli athletes and took nine hostage, according to The Jerusalem Post. After a day failed negotiations with the terrorists, the Palestinian radicals demanded a flight with their hostages to an Arab country.
Attempts by German security officials to rescue the hostages failed and the Israeli citizens were ultimately murdered by the terrorists.
The organizers of the opening ceremony Friday remembered the massacre with a moment of silence at the beginning of the event.
The families of the 11 victims had in the past requested a moment of silence during the opening ceremony. The idea, though, was nixed by the International Olympic Committee, although then-President Barack Obama said in 2012 he supported the notion.
Jacques Rogge, who was serving as president of the International Olympic Committee at the time, said such a tribute would be “inappropriate.”
At the time, Ankie Spitzer, a widow of fencing coach Andre Spitzer, who was killed in the attack, said the committee should be ashamed of itself.
“You have forsaken the 11 members of your Olympic family,” she said. “You discriminate against them only because they are Israelis and Jews.”
***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***
Another one of the victims’ widows, Ileana Romano, said Rogge “submitted to terrorism” and “will be written down on the pages of history as … a president who violated the Olympic charter calls for brotherhood, friendship, and peace.”
As for the moment of silence finally held this year, Israeli Prime Minister Natfali Bennett expressed gratitude to Japan for hosting the Olympics.
“Today, for the first time at the Olympic Games, the brutal massacre of 11 members of the Israeli delegation at the 1972 Munich Olympics was officially mentioned,” Bennett tweeted. “I welcome this important and historic moment. May they rest in peace.”
The moment of silence also memorialized those who died of COVID-19.
***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***