The Jordanian army and air force had been battered by Israel in the 1967 war. While the US and UK supplied equipment to rebuild the military, one of the nations Jordan turned to for training the newly equipped army was Pakistan. One of the experts dispatched by Pakistan was a brigadier named Mohammed Zia-u-Haq. Zia-ul-Haq would rise to become a general and overthrow civilian rule in Pakistan and rule the country from 1978 to 1988.

On September 17, 1970, King Hussein ordered the Jordanian Army to target militants operating from the refugee camps around Amman.

ON September 18, Syrian tanks entered Jordan in support of the Palestinian militants near the town of Irbid, which Palestinian militants had captured. Riedel wrote, "Hussein sent Zia-ul-Haq to the scene to make an on-the-ground assessment of the situation. Zia reported that the situation was serious but not dire. Jordan could handle the Syrian tanks with its own forces and prevail. Zia effectively took charge of part of the Jordanian counterattack..."

The tide of the operation turned as Syria opted to stay out of the hostilities.

On September 26, then Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser summoned King Hussein and Arafat to Cairo to push for a ceasefire, which was signed the next day.

Casualties and significance

Riedel writes, "Between 3,000 and 4,000 fedayeen (Palestinian militants) died, 600 Syrians were killed or wounded, and the Jordanian army reported 537 killed in action. Civilian casualties are unknown but were sizeable." However, Arafat claimed the Jordanian Army's operation in Black September killed up to 25,000 people.

British-Pakistani writer Tariq Ali refers to the significance of Black September in his book The Duel: Pakistan on the Flight Path of American Power, published in 2008. Ali refers to a quote by Moshe Dayan, the legendary Israeli military commander and statesman, who said that in Black September, King Hussein, "killed more Palestinians in 11 days than Israel could kill in 20 years".

Black September effectively ended the influence of Palestinian militants in Jordan and led to the ouster of the PLO and other Palestinian groups, most of whom switched base to Lebanon.

Zia-ul-Haq's role?

Zia-ul-Haq's exact role in Black September is still a matter of debate. While many have even called him a 'butcher' of Palestinians, a retired Pakistani diplomat argued claims about Zia's involvement in the conflict were exaggerated.

source: Dr Gaurav Pradhan Telegram