The Munich Olympics Massacre Began

In the early hours of 5 September 1972, eight Palestinian militants of the group Black September scaled a fence at the Olympic Village in Munich, West Germany. Carrying assault rifles and grenades in duffel bags, they forced their way into the quarters of the Israeli team, killing two athletes on the spot and seizing nine hostages.

The gunmen demanded the release of hundreds of prisoners held by Israel and West Germany. For roughly a day, the standoff played out on television, watched by an estimated audience in the hundreds of millions, while negotiations stalled and the Games carried on nearby.

What began as a festival of sport became the first act of terrorism broadcast live to a global audience.

That evening, a botched rescue attempt at a military airfield ended in catastrophe. All nine remaining hostages were killed, along with five of the attackers and a West German policeman. In total, 11 members of the Israeli team died. The attack reshaped how governments thought about counterterrorism and Olympic security for decades to come.