How Cold War Czechoslovakia became a haven for terrorists

Cold War Prague hid its historic charms under a veil of grime and dilapidation. But, as we learn from this deeply researched and scholarly study, it was still a favoured destination for international terrorists, mostly Palestinians, after the 1968 Soviet invasion. They liked its hotels, its proximity to the West, its medical facilities, the tolerance and support of its security authorities and the quality of its light-arms manufacturing.

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Communist Czechoslovakia (CSSR) boasted relatively efficient security and intelligence services (generically referred to as the Stb). They were scrupulous record- keepers, and Stb archives, released after the Velvet Revolution with minimal expurgation, remain among the most complete of any former Warsaw Pact nation. Daniela Richterova, a senior lecturer at King’s College, London, has become their preeminent interpreter and historian.

Western intelligence personnel who lived and worked behind the Iron Curtain were there to conduct the espionage dimension of the Cold War, as I did myself. Palestinian terrorism was a secondary concern. We were of course aware that Palestinian terrorists enjoyed sanctuary in central and eastern Europe, but we lacked precise knowledge about it. The question of what support they were actually being given by the intelligence and security organisation of the Warsaw Pact remained vague and speculative. Now, half a century later, we are presented with a detailed picture of what was going on in Czechoslovakia. For former professionals and historians alike, it is a fascinating exposé.

Richterova has immersed herself in the Kafkaesque Stb archives for a decade and has definitively filled the gap in our understanding of this hidden dimension of the Cold War.