Name Hamza Hamieh | ||
Hamza akl Hamieh (known simply as 'Hamza') was born in Baalbeck, Lebanon, in 1954. In his twenties, he became a follower of Shi'ite religious leader, Imam Musa al-Sadr. He gained notoriety as a prolific aircraft hijacker. He completed at least six hijackings between 1979 and 1982, his most notable being the hijacking of Kuwait Airways 561 in Beirut on February 24, 1982. Just 79 days earlier, he had completed the longest hijacking in history, after commandeering Libyan Arab Airlines 727 in midair between Zurich and Tripoli, flying 6,000 miles with multiple stops throughout Europe and the Middle East before landing in Lebanon three days later.
In 1984, Hamza was appointed military commander of the Lebanese Shi'ite political movement Afwaj al Muqawimal al Lubnaniya (Lebanese Resistance Regiments). He presently resides in Lebanon, and was interviewed in Beirut in November, 2014.