The widow of one of the Israeli victims of the 1972 Olympic attack has expressed optimism about an agreement in the compensation dispute with Germany. “I’m waiting for the explanation from the Germans,” Ilana Romano told the German Press Agency in Tel Aviv on Wednesday. She is the widow of the then murdered weightlifter Yossef Romano. “Anyway, I think we have overcome the obstacle and we will probably go (to Munich) too,” said Romano on the status of the negotiations.
According to information from negotiating circles, a German offer is in the air to pay the bereaved about 28 million euros.
Next Monday – the 50th anniversary of the assassination – the murdered people are to be commemorated in Munich. The victims’ families had called for a boycott of the event. They consider the handling of the assassination to be just as inadequate as the compensation paid so far. In the event of an agreement, however, it is expected that the Israeli families and President Izchak Herzog will attend the commemoration ceremony in Munich.
On September 5, 1972, Palestinian terrorists attacked the Israeli team at the Olympic Games in Munich. Eleven members of the team and one policeman were killed. The safety precautions were considered inadequate, and an attempt by the German forces to free them ended in disaster. Adequate compensation for the families of the victims of the attack has been a struggle for decades. They also demand an apology.
