4 – Black September – Munich (1972)
Recently, Steven Spielberg detailed the events that took place in West Germany, in his film, Munich. This film retold one of the most dramatic moments in all of Olympic history. In his film, he told the story of the politically motivated hostage taking of Israeli team members, by Palestinian guerrilla forces.
The terrorist group, named Black September, attempted to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners who were being held in Israeli prisons. They also had other demands for the release of prisoners being held in German penitentiaries.
It is reported that the terrorists were offered huge sums of money to release the Jewish hostages, but they were not accepted. Several Olympic athletes were shot and killed as an unsuccessful rescue attempt by West German forces failed, and the incident is now known as the “Munich Massacre.”