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Case file

Munich massacre

SOLVED1972Olympic Village, Munich, Germany4 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Illustrative

On September 5, 1972, eight members of the Palestinian group Black September entered the Olympic Village in Munich, West Germany, and forced their way into the Israeli delegation's quarters. Wrestling coach Moshe Weinberg and weightlifter Yossef Romano were killed during the initial assault. Nine other members of the delegation were held hostage.

The hostage-takers demanded the release of prisoners held in Israel and safe passage out of West Germany. West German officials negotiated through the day. A police plan to enter the building was abandoned after live television coverage exposed the officers' positions.

That night, the hostage-takers and nine hostages were taken by helicopter to Fürstenfeldbruck airbase, where police attempted a rescue. The operation failed. In the early hours of September 6, all nine remaining hostages and West German police officer Anton Fliegerbauer were killed. Five hostage-takers were killed and three were arrested.

The three surviving hostage-takers were released the following month in a hostage exchange after the hijacking of Lufthansa Flight 615. The handling of the attack and rescue drew sustained criticism. German and Olympic institutions have since commemorated the eleven Israeli victims and Fliegerbauer, and Germany established a historical commission as part of the fiftieth-anniversary process in 2022.

The case is classified as solved only in the catalog sense that the participants and outcome of the attack are known. That label does not suggest that every question of responsibility or accountability received a judicial resolution.

Key facts

Victims
Moshe Weinberg, Ze'ev Friedman, Andre Spitzer, Yossef Romano, Amitzur Shapira, David Berger, Yossef Gutfreund, Kehat Shorr, Eliezer Halfin, Yakov Springer, Mark Slavin
Date
1972
Location
Olympic Village, Munich, Germany
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 1972-09-05

    Eight Black September members entered the Olympic Village and took members of the Israeli Olympic delegation hostage; Moshe Weinberg and Yossef Romano were killed during the initial assault.

  2. 1972-09-05

    A West German police plan to enter the building was abandoned after live television coverage exposed the officers' positions.

  3. 1972-09-05

    The hostage-takers and nine remaining hostages were flown to Fürstenfeldbruck airbase for a planned exchange and police rescue attempt.

  4. 1972-09-06

    The rescue attempt failed; the nine remaining hostages and police officer Anton Fliegerbauer were killed, along with five hostage-takers. Three hostage-takers were arrested.

  5. 1972-10

    The three surviving hostage-takers were released in a hostage exchange following the hijacking of Lufthansa Flight 615.

  6. 2022-09-05

    Germany marked the fiftieth anniversary with victims' families and announced a historical commission addressing the attack and its aftermath.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Moshe Weinberg

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the initial assault on September 5, 1972.

  • Ze'ev Friedman

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

  • Anton Fliegerbauer

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    West German police officer killed during the failed rescue at Fürstenfeldbruck airbase.

  • Andre Spitzer

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

  • Yossef Romano

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the initial assault on September 5, 1972.

  • Amitzur Shapira

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

  • David Berger

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

  • Yossef Gutfreund

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

  • Kehat Shorr

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

  • Eliezer Halfin

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

  • Yakov Springer

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

  • Mark Slavin

    VICTIM

    Member of the Israeli Olympic delegation killed during the hostage-taking and failed rescue.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Places

Olympic Village, Munich, Germany

48.1797, 11.5492

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
Members of Black September took eleven members of the Israeli Olympic delegation hostage in Munich on September 5, 1972; all eleven hostages and West German police officer Anton Fliegerbauer were killed during the attack and failed rescue.
Where did the massacre happen?
Olympic Village, Munich, Germany.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.
More cases in Germany

Sources

  1. OFFICIAL / AGENCYCommemoration of the victims of the 1972 Olympic attackGerman Federal Foreign Office · 2026-07-13
  2. OFFICIAL / AGENCYRemembering the 1972 Munich attackFederal Government of Germany · 2026-07-13
  3. OFFICIAL / AGENCYOlympic archive record on the Munich 1972 victimsInternational Olympic Committee · 2026-07-13
  4. PRESSThe Munich massacre and its aftermathThe Guardian · 2026-07-13

Record history

First published
JUL 13, 2026

  1. JUL 13, 2026Correction

    Catalog QA: moved to the archive tier without removing the public dossier.