Palestinian National Charter (1968)
The Palestinian National Charter, sometimes called the Palestinian National Covenant and transliterated from Arabic script as al-Mithaq al-Watani al-Filastini, states the aims of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). The PLO claims to represent the interests of the Palestinian people in and around Israel, a claim that the United Nations recognizes. The charter is part constitution, part “declaration of independence,” and part political manifesto.
An earlier charter, which formed the PLO, was adopted on May 28, 1964. Attached to that document was another referred to variously as the Basic Constitution, Basic Law, or Fundamental Law, which outlined the structure of the PLO. On July 17, 1968, however, the charter was extensively amended as a result of the Six-Day War (June 5–10, 1967) between Israel and the combined forces of Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. As a consequence of this war, in which Israel prevailed by launching preemptive surprise attacks against massed Arab...
