Britannica Sources used in this answer

What happened to Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

A woman in a white pleated dress lights the Olympic torch from a large flame in a gold cauldron, with a crowd seated in the background at Panathenaic Stadium in Athens. — Olympic Games An actress playing the role of an Athenian high priestess lights the Olympic flame in Athens, October 31, 2017. The torch was later carried to Pyeongchang, South Korea, for the 2018 Winter Olympics.

At the 1972 Summer Games in Munich, 11 members of the Israeli Olympic team were killed during a terrorist attack known as the Munich massacre.

On September 5, 1972, eight militants from the Palestinian group Black September scaled the fence of the Olympic Village and forced their way into the Israeli team's quarters. Two Israelis were killed during the initial takeover, and nine others were taken hostage. The attackers demanded the release of over 200 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons and other individuals held in German prisons.123

Following failed negotiations, the hostages were transported to the Fūrstenfeldbruck Air Base for a planned transfer to the Middle East. A botched rescue attempt by West German police resulted in a gun battle, during which all nine remaining Israeli hostages were killed, along with one West German police officer and five of the terrorists.32

The tragedy remains a somber event in Olympic history, marking a profound failure in security and crisis management. In response, Israel launched Operation Wrath of God to target those responsible for the attack.345