This page is subject to the extended confirmed restriction related to the Arab-Israeli conflict.The PFLP-GC Headquarters Raid was an Israeli commando operation against the Lebanese headquarters of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command (PFLP-GC) in Naameh, 10 km (6.2 mi) south of Beirut, launched on 9 December 1988.

[2] The operation was named Operation Blue and Brown (Hebrew: מבצע כחול וחום, romanized: Mivtza Kachol ve-Chum) and consisted of a night-time coastal landing and a difficult 3-kilometre (1.9 mi) march across very rough terrain to the heavily fortified Palestinian base, located near the coastal Lebanese town of Naameh (Arabic: الناعمة, romanized: an-Na'imah).

[1] Its two main objectives were the assassination of PFLP-GC's Secretary-General Ahmad Jibril, reported to be present at the base, and the destruction of the system of bunkers, caves, and tunnels, which made it invulnerable to air attack.

The Israeli soldiers never managed to break into or destroy the main bunker where Jibril was thought to be hiding.

The attack on the caves similarly stalled because of loss of element of surprise and subsequent stiff resistance.

[5] PFLP-GC was a small radical Palestinian resistance organization, whose main source of strength was the backing of the Syrian state and its security services.

PFLP-GC was suspected of the bombing of Swissair Flight 330 (1970), the Kiryat Shmona massacre (1974) and the Night of the Gliders (1987).

The facilities had repeatedly been subjected to, and proven impenetrable to, severe aerial bombardment from the Israeli air force.

[5] Six months prior to the operation, PLO military commander Khalil al-Wazir had been assassinated in an Israeli raid in Tunis.

Israeli Deputy Chief of Staff Major General Ehud Barak vowed that Jibril's organization "will in due time pay the price" for its murderous mission.

The Israeli Prime minister Yitzhak Shamir "signed a Red Page" for Ahmad Jibril, meaning that he authorized his assassination.

[7][4] Due to faulty intelligence, Gerstein's men could not locate the air vents of the bunker, where they were supposed to throw teargas grenades, to force the occupants to evacuate.

Repeated rounds of point-blank RPG grenades and Law 80 mm missiles resulted only in negligible damage.

[8][7] After the death of Mei-Tal, the Israeli force ceased attacking the tunnels, and concentrated their efforts on rescuing the wounded.

[9] Apparently, Ahmad Jibril held a press conference in his bunker, while the IDF was still searching for the missing soldiers.

Jibril was pictured holding Mei-Tal's personal Galil rifle, which was fitted with a silencer, specially developed for the operation, which Israel had preferred not to end up in enemy hands.