Death of Lod Airport massacre terrorist ‘closes chapter’ in victim family’s painful story

The recent death of Kozo Okamoto, a Japanese Red Army terrorist involved in the 1972 Lod Airport massacre, has brought renewed attention to the attack that killed 26 people, including 17 American pilgrims from Puerto Rico. Dámaris Pérez, whose mother, Vasthi Zila Morales, was killed and father, Pastor José Vega Franqui, was wounded, expressed deep emotion, noting Okamoto "never asked for forgiveness or showed any repentance."

He never said, 'I'm sorry.'

Okamoto, along with two accomplices, used fake passports and retrieved weapons from violin cases at baggage claim before opening fire. He was captured, sentenced to life, but released in the 1985 Jibril Agreement. He later received political asylum in Lebanon, where he remained under the protection of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) until his death. While Pastor Franqui stated, "another chapter to the painful story of the massacre has closed," and emphasized forgiveness, Pérez found her journey to forgiveness longer, especially after seeing Okamoto at a 2022 PFLP event commemorating the massacre.