‘GRATEFUL AND RELIEVED’

1972 Olympics Massacre Victims’ Families Reach Deal With Germany

The $28.1 million agreement comes just days before a ceremony commemorating the 25th anniversary of the attack, which the families had previously threatened to boycott.

The families of 11 Israeli athletes killed in a terrorist attack during the 1972 Olympics in Munich have agreed to the terms of a compensation deal with Germany, just days before the tragedy’s 50th anniversary ceremony. Relatives of the victims had threatened to boycott the event over previous compensation offers, which one said they regarded as “a joke, an affront.” The deal—announced in a joint statement between Israel and Germany on Wednesday—amounted to $28.1 million, according to The New York Times. “I am grateful and relieved that a solution was found that opens the door to a joint commemoration,” said President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who earlier this month announced that Germany would be declassifying records related to the attack and the botched rescue operation. German authorities were fiercely criticized in the wake of the massacre for their mishandling of the crisis, which left the athletes, five militant Palestinian hostage-takers, and a German police officer dead.