DING DONG :

Ruthless Palestinian militant reported dead : Abu Nidal dies under ‘mysterious circumstances’ in Baghdad home (MSNBC, August 19, 2002) 

Palestinian guerrilla commander Abu Nidal, one of the world’s most wanted men, has been found dead in his Baghdad home with gunshot wounds, Palestinian sources said on Monday. Over the last three decades Abu Nidal earned a reputation as the most ruthless of all Palestinian guerrilla commanders and his terror group carried out attacks against Western targets as well as moderate Palestinians.

ABU NIDAL, 65, a sworn enemy of Yasser Arafat and any Palestinian leader who sought accommodation with Israel, led a dissident Palestinian militant organization high on Washington’s list of groups considered terrorist.

It was blamed for attacks in 20 countries in which hundreds of people were killed or wounded, mostly during the 1970s and 1980s.

A senior Palestinian official said Abu Nidal had died under “mysterious conditions” and it was unclear whether he was killed or committed suicide.

In a related story, meteorologists reported there was a palpable lessening in the stench of evil that hangs over Baghdad today. The forecast calls for further clearing. Posted by Orrin Judd at August 19, 2002 9:50 AM