Metropolitan Police renew appeal for information on 1987 assassination of Palestinian cartoonist Naji al-Ali
The Counter Terrorism Command of the Metropolitan Police is looking for fresh leads regarding the assassination of Palestinian cartoonist Naji Salim Hussain al-Ali, who was killed on July 22, 1987, outside the London offices of the Kuwaiti newspaper Al Qabas. Renowned for his controversial political cartoons, al-Ali often faced death threats for his critiques of Arab and Israeli politics. Witnesses described the shooter as a twenty-five-year-old man with a Middle Eastern appearance and thick, wavy black hair. Additionally, a man in his fifties was spotted nearby. Authorities detained Ismail Sowan, a 28-year-old Palestinian researcher from Jerusalem affiliated with both the PLO and Mossad, who claimed to have infiltrated the responsible terror cell. Commander Dean Haydon, overseeing the case review, believes that after three decades, former witnesses may be more willing to share vital information.
Key facts
- Naji Salim Hussain al-Ali was assassinated on July 22, 1987
- The murder occurred outside the London offices of Kuwaiti newspaper Al Qabas
- Al-Ali's cartoons satirized Arab and Israeli politics and drew frequent death threats
- The assailant was approximately 25 years old with Middle Eastern appearance and thick, wavy black hair
- Another Middle Eastern man in his fifties was seen near the scene
- Ismail Sowan, a 28-year-old Jerusalem-born Palestinian researcher at Hull University, was arrested
- Sowan worked for both the PLO and Israeli intelligence agency Mossad
- Commander Dean Haydon heads the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command review of the case
Entities
Artists
- Naji Salim Hussain al-Ali
Institutions
- Metropolitan Police
- Counter Terrorism Command
- Al Qabas
- Hull University
- PLO
- Mossad
Locations
- London
- United Kingdom
- Jerusalem
- Palestine