Organization of the Oppressed on Earth
{{Short description|Militant group in Lebanon in the 1980s}}
The Organization of the Oppressed on Earth is a group that claimed responsibility for kidnappings, bombings, and executions in Lebanon in the 1980s. It was considered a precursor to, or another name for, Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah.
== Connection to Hezbollah ==
The US, Israel, and Canada consider the names "Islamic Jihad Organization", "Organization of the Oppressed on Earth" and the "Revolutionary Justice Organization" to be synonymous with Hezbollah.Levitt, Matthew. [http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/hezbollah-finances-funding-the-party-of-god "Hezbollah Finances – Funding the Party of God."] The Washington Institute. February 2005. 1 February 2015.{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFAArchive/1990_1999/1996/4/HIZBULLAH+-+11-Apr-96.htm|author=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs|title=Hizbullah|date=11 April 1996|access-date=17 August 2006}}{{cite journal|url=http://www.gazette.gc.ca/archives/p2/2003/2003-02-13-x/pdf/g2-137x1.pdf|journal=Canada Gazette Part II|title=SOR/2003-53: Criminal Code; Regulations Amending the Regulations Establishing a List of Entities|volume=137|issue=1 extra|page=1|date=12 February 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118214555/http://www.gazette.gc.ca/archives/p2/2003/2003-02-13-x/pdf/g2-137x1.pdf|archive-date=18 January 2012}}
Jeffrey Goldberg wrote in the New York Post:
Using various names, including the Islamic Jihad Organization and the Organization of the Oppressed on Earth, Hezbollah remained underground until 1985, when it published a manifesto condemning the West, and proclaiming, "Allah is behind us supporting and protecting us while instilling fear in the hearts of our enemies."[http://www.jeffreygoldberg.net/articles/tny/a_reporter_at_large_in_the_par.php In The Party Of God] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070223074001/http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/articles/021014fa_fact4 |date=23 February 2007 }} Part I, By Jeffrey Goldberg, The New Yorker, 14 October 2002
== Activities ==
=== Bombings ===
The group claimed responsibility for a 1985 bombing attack against the Madrid offices of British Airways and Trans World Airlines.{{cite news|title="Shiite Moslem Faction Says It Holds 4 Lebanese Jews"|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1985/11/18/shiite-moslem-faction-says-it-holds-4-lebanese-jews/706359ea-cd2e-4efe-aa65-be5aa55ca2d8/}}
= Kidnappings =
The group kidnapped 4 Jews in 1985, including Isaac Sasson, leader of the Jewish community in Lebanon, and Dr. Ellie Hallaq, the community doctor. Sasson ({{langx|ar|إسحق ساسون}}) was taken at gunpoint March 31, 1985, on his way from the Beirut International Airport, after a trip to Abu Dhabi.{{cite news
|newspaper=Lewiston Daily Sun
|title=Caught in the cross-fire
|author=Jack Anderson
|date=Sep 17, 1985
|page=3
}} The group killed the abductees one-by-one.{{cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/e1bd727e70b8af296e5ccae46aff3ad0|title= URGENT Police Find Body of Missing Lebanese Jew|website= Associated Press}}{{cite book|title="Terrorism in the Cold War: State Support in the West, Middle East and Latin America"|page=202}}
In 1987, the group kidnapped British citizen Terry Waite who was in Lebanon as a hostage negotiator.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/1908671.stm|title= Who are Hezbollah?|date= 4 April 2002}} Waite was retained in captivity for 1,763 days, the first four years of which were spent in solitary confinement. He was finally released on 18 November 1991.{{Cite web|url=https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2017/24-november/news/uk/from-the-archive-bells-ring-nationwide-to-welcome-terry-waite|title=From the archive: Bells ring nationwide to welcome Terry Waite|website=www.churchtimes.co.uk|access-date=2020-03-13}}
In 1989, the group kidnapped and then later hung United States Lieutenant Colonel Richard Higgins. Higgins was a member of the United Nations Truce Supervisory Organization observer unit and was accused of spying by his captors.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/08/01/world/group-beirut-says-it-hanged-us-colonel-2d-threat-issued-bush-convenes-security.html|title=GROUP IN BEIRUT SAYS IT HANGED US COLONEL|work=The New York Times |date=August 1989 |last1=Hijazi |first1=Ihsan A. }}{{cite web|url=https://irp.fas.org/threat/terrorism/sup6.pdf"|title=Hostage-Taking and Kidnapping Terror in the COE}} A videotape was released July 31, showing his body hanging from a gallows.{{cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/93f48ed8a9f7c7ef7c4ebd3db4495e78|title=Sketches of Groups Holding Hostages in Lebanon With AM-Hostages, Bjt|website=Associated Press}}