palestine liberation organization

noun

1. an umbrella organization for several Arab groups dedicated to the recovery of Palestine from the state of Israel and the return of refugees from the area to their homeland through diplomatic, military, and terrorist means. Abbreviation: PLO

noun

1. an organization founded in 1964 with the aim of creating a state for Palestinians; it recognized the state of Israel in 1993 and Israel granted Palestinians autonomy in the Gaza Strip and West BankAbbreviation: PLO

A government that is recognized by the United Nations as the body that represents the people of Palestine displaced by the establishment of Israel (see Arab-Israeli conflict). The PLO has long been led by Yasir Arafat and, at least officially, is committed to a compromise by which Israel would exchange portions of the Occupied Territories, areas including the Gaza Strip and the West Bank that Israel took from the Arabs in the Six-Day War. Arafat currently heads the Palestinian Authority, which has gained limited self-government over parts of the Occupied Territories. He has been opposed by radical Arabs, especially by Hamas, an organization opposed to compromise with Israel. Israeli opinion on whether the PLO can be trusted to discharge its side of any compromise settlement is deeply divided.