Palestinian National Charter

About the Author

The author of the 1964 Palestinian National Charter was Ahmed Shukeiri, the first chairman of the PLO. He was born on January 1, 1908, in Lebanon. He studied law in Jerusalem and then became a member of the Syrian delegation to the United Nations (1949–1951). He served as the assistant secretary general of the Arab League (1950–1956), followed by a position as Saudi ambassador to the United Nations (1957–1962). He was appointed chairman of the PLO when the organization was formed in 1964. In 1967 he was forced to resign because it was believed that his fiery anti-Zionist rhetoric had helped foment the Six-Day War. He was succeeded as PLO chairman by Yahya Hammuda and died on February 26, 1980. The authorship of the 1968 revision is less clear cut. The Fourth Palestine National Assembly, the executive and legislative body of the PLO, convened in Cairo, Egypt, on July 10, 1968. The assembly appointed a committee to amend the charter.