Hans-Joachim Klein
Encyclopedia
Hans-Joachim Klein is a former member of the German left-wing militant group Revolutionary Cells (RZ). In 1975 Klein participated in an attack on OPEC headquarters in Vienna organized by Carlos the Jackal
, in which he was seriously injured. He publicly renounced political violence two years later. After decades in hiding, he was arrested in 1998 and prosecuted for his role in the OPEC attack. Klein was sentenced to nine years imprisonment and paroled in 2003.
for rassenschande
during World War II, killed herself a few months after Klein was born, and he spent some time in a foster home after her death. Klein was physically abused by his father, who took custody of him again after he remarried. For most of his life Klein believed incorrectly that his father had been an SS member and his mother had been Jewish.
prisoner support group Red Aid
(Rote Hilfe) in Frankfurt and subsequently for the RAF lawyer Klaus Croissant
in Stuttgart. At one point he shared a Frankfurt commune with Joschka Fischer
and Daniel Cohn-Bendit
. He served as Jean-Paul Sartre
's chauffeur when Sartre visited the imprisoned Andreas Baader
in December 1974. He joined the RZ in 1975. Klein has described Holger Meins
' death on hunger strike as inspiring his turn to violence; he carried a photo of Meins' emaciated body in his wallet. In 1975 he took part in an attack on an OPEC
conference in Vienna organized by Carlos the Jackal
, in which three people were killed and Klein himself was shot in the stomach.
Klein renounced terrorism in 1977, sending a letter to Der Spiegel
(with his gun enclosed) in which he warned of planned RZ attacks on two leaders of the German Jewish community. He then went underground, hiding from his former comrades as well as the police. Klein further explained his change of views in a 1978 interview with the French journalist Jean-Marcel Bouguereau and a 1979 book, titled "Mercenary Death," which Cohn-Bendit wrote the foreword to.
, where he had been living for five years. After his arrest several German and French public figures, including Cohn-Bendit, Bouguereau, and André Glucksmann
, stated publicly that they had been aware of Klein's location and had assisted him during his time in hiding. Eighteen months after his arrest Klein was extradited to Germany to stand trial for his role in the OPEC attack.
At trial Klein admitted participating in the attack, but denied having killed anyone. He also testified that Libya
had assisted in the raid, giving the attackers weapons and information on the conference's security arrangements. Fischer, then Germany's Foreign Minister, testified at his trial as a character witness; his presence intensified the controversy then playing out over his radical past. In February 2001, after a four-month trial, Klein was convicted of murder, attempted murder, and hostage taking, and sentenced to nine years in prison. The prosecution had asked for 14 years, but Klein was given a lighter sentence because he provided authorities with information about other participants in the attack. In 2003 he was released on parole and returned to Normandy.
Klein is the subject of the 2006 documentary My Life as a Terrorist, directed by Alexander Oey
. He also appeared in the 2007 documentaries Protagonist
and Terror's Advocate
.
Carlos the Jackal
Ilich Ramírez Sánchez , better known as Carlos the Jackal, is a Venezuelan pro-Palestinian currently serving a life sentence in France for shooting to death two French secret agents and a Lebanese informer in 1975....
, in which he was seriously injured. He publicly renounced political violence two years later. After decades in hiding, he was arrested in 1998 and prosecuted for his role in the OPEC attack. Klein was sentenced to nine years imprisonment and paroled in 2003.
Childhood
Klein came from a working-class background. His mother, who was imprisoned in Ravensbrück concentration campRavensbrück concentration camp
Ravensbrück was a notorious women's concentration camp during World War II, located in northern Germany, 90 km north of Berlin at a site near the village of Ravensbrück ....
for rassenschande
Rassenschande
Rassenschande or Blutschande was the Nazi term for sexual relations between Aryans and non-Aryans, which was punishable by law...
during World War II, killed herself a few months after Klein was born, and he spent some time in a foster home after her death. Klein was physically abused by his father, who took custody of him again after he remarried. For most of his life Klein believed incorrectly that his father had been an SS member and his mother had been Jewish.
Activism and violence
In the 1970s Klein worked for the legal Red Army FactionRed Army Faction
The radicalized were, like many in the New Left, influenced by:* Sociological developments, pressure within the educational system in and outside Europe and the U.S...
prisoner support group Red Aid
Rote Hilfe e.V.
Rote Hilfe e.V. is a German far-left prisoner support group. RH was founded in 1975, although localized groups calling themselves "Rote Hilfe" had begun to appear at the end of the 1960s. The group views itself as a successor to the Weimar-era Rote Hilfe...
(Rote Hilfe) in Frankfurt and subsequently for the RAF lawyer Klaus Croissant
Klaus Croissant
Klaus Croissant was a lawyer of the Red Army Faction, an East German spy and a political activist for Berlin's Alternative Liste and after 1990 the PDS....
in Stuttgart. At one point he shared a Frankfurt commune with Joschka Fischer
Joschka Fischer
Joseph Martin "Joschka" Fischer is a German politician of the Alliance '90/The Greens. He served as Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor of Germany in the cabinet of Gerhard Schröder from 1998 to 2005...
and Daniel Cohn-Bendit
Daniel Cohn-Bendit
Daniel Marc Cohn-Bendit is a Franco-German politician, active in both countries. He was a student leader during the unrest of May 1968 in France and he was also known during that time as Dany le Rouge...
. He served as Jean-Paul Sartre
Jean-Paul Sartre
Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre was a French existentialist philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary critic. He was one of the leading figures in 20th century French philosophy, particularly Marxism, and was one of the key figures in literary...
's chauffeur when Sartre visited the imprisoned Andreas Baader
Andreas Baader
Andreas Bernd Baader was one of the first leaders of the German left-wing militant organization Red Army Faction, also commonly known as the Baader-Meinhof Gang.- Life :...
in December 1974. He joined the RZ in 1975. Klein has described Holger Meins
Holger Meins
Holger Klaus Meins was a German cinematography student who joined the Red Army Faction in the early 1970s and died on hunger strike in prison.-As a Revolutionary:...
' death on hunger strike as inspiring his turn to violence; he carried a photo of Meins' emaciated body in his wallet. In 1975 he took part in an attack on an OPEC
OPEC
OPEC is an intergovernmental organization of twelve developing countries made up of Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. OPEC has maintained its headquarters in Vienna since 1965, and hosts regular meetings...
conference in Vienna organized by Carlos the Jackal
Carlos the Jackal
Ilich Ramírez Sánchez , better known as Carlos the Jackal, is a Venezuelan pro-Palestinian currently serving a life sentence in France for shooting to death two French secret agents and a Lebanese informer in 1975....
, in which three people were killed and Klein himself was shot in the stomach.
Klein renounced terrorism in 1977, sending a letter to Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
(with his gun enclosed) in which he warned of planned RZ attacks on two leaders of the German Jewish community. He then went underground, hiding from his former comrades as well as the police. Klein further explained his change of views in a 1978 interview with the French journalist Jean-Marcel Bouguereau and a 1979 book, titled "Mercenary Death," which Cohn-Bendit wrote the foreword to.
Arrest and subsequent events
After spending two decades in hiding, mostly in France, in September 1998 he was apprehended in the Normandy village of Sainte-Honorine-la-GuillaumeSainte-Honorine-la-Guillaume
Sainte-Honorine-la-Guillaume is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France.-History:* 1620: Georges Pierre is the vicar of this parish.* 1622: Jean Le Corsonnois is curate and François Guérin "parish priest"....
, where he had been living for five years. After his arrest several German and French public figures, including Cohn-Bendit, Bouguereau, and André Glucksmann
André Glucksmann
André Glucksmann is a French philosopher and writer, and member of the French new philosophers.-Early years:André Glucksmann was born in 1937, in Boulogne-Billancourt, the son of Ashkenazi Jewish parents from Romania and Czechoslovakia. He studied in Lyon, and later enrolled at École normale...
, stated publicly that they had been aware of Klein's location and had assisted him during his time in hiding. Eighteen months after his arrest Klein was extradited to Germany to stand trial for his role in the OPEC attack.
At trial Klein admitted participating in the attack, but denied having killed anyone. He also testified that Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
had assisted in the raid, giving the attackers weapons and information on the conference's security arrangements. Fischer, then Germany's Foreign Minister, testified at his trial as a character witness; his presence intensified the controversy then playing out over his radical past. In February 2001, after a four-month trial, Klein was convicted of murder, attempted murder, and hostage taking, and sentenced to nine years in prison. The prosecution had asked for 14 years, but Klein was given a lighter sentence because he provided authorities with information about other participants in the attack. In 2003 he was released on parole and returned to Normandy.
Klein is the subject of the 2006 documentary My Life as a Terrorist, directed by Alexander Oey
Alexander Oey
Alexander Oey is a Dutch film director who has directed numerous documentaries for Dutch television, including the controversial Euro-Islam According to Tariq Ramadan and My Life as a Terrorist: The Story of Hans-Joachim Klein , as well as There is No Authority But Yourself, a documentary on the...
. He also appeared in the 2007 documentaries Protagonist
Protagonist (film)
Protagonist is a 2007 documentary film about the parallels between human life and Euripidean dramatic structure. The film was written and directed by Jessica Yu. It featured extensive interviews with German terrorist Hans-Joachim Klein, ex-gay Christian evangelist Mark Pierpont, Mexican bank robber...
and Terror's Advocate
Terror's Advocate
Terror's Advocate is a 2007 French documentary film about Jacques Vergès.-Critical reception:The film received generally favorable reviews from critics. As of January 5, 2008, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 85% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 40 reviews...
.