Intelligence Squared: "The Remarkable True Story of the Extremists Who Hijacked the 1970s" with Jason Burke (Part One)

Date: January 4, 2026 | Host: Gordon Carrera | Guest: Jason Burke

Episode Overview

This live event episode features renowned Guardian journalist Jason Burke, discussing his new book The Revolutionists: The Story of the Extremists Who Hijacked the 1970s. Burke, interviewed by Gordon Carrera, explores how a diverse cast of radical figures—such as Leila Khaled, Ulrike Meinhof, and Carlos the Jackal—pioneered spectacular terrorist acts and political violence, leaving an indelible mark on the decade. The conversation covers the context of the era, motivations of these revolutionaries, their methods, the media’s role in mythmaking, and the legacy of their actions.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Focus on the 1970s?

• Genesis of the Book:

  • Jason Burke describes how he shifted his attention from recent Islamic extremism (post-9/11) to the underexplored era of the 1970s.
  • He noticed a dramatic transformation: from early, highly publicized and performative hijackings to the bloodier, more nihilistic bombings by the decade’s end.
  • (04:22) “I found a lot of...really interesting people. And I could see that something in the 70s, something very important had happened...it started with people like Leila Khaled...and at the end of the decade...you had big bombs being driven into embassies...and those are two radically different ways of approaching political violence.” — Jason Burke

• The Contextual Shift:

  • The 1960s saw a global explosion of radicalism and idealism; the 1980s became more cynical. The 1970s, therefore, are a transitional period worth examining.

2. Character-Driven Approach—Humanizing “Terrorists”

• Burke structures his book around the compelling lives of these figures, arguing this is the best way to truly grasp their motivations and the era’s spirit.
• (08:23) “The people who really engage me...the only way to tell a story to a reader is through those characters.” — Jason Burke

3. Leila Khaled and the “Celebrity” of Terrorism

• Background & Motives:

  • Khaled became the first woman to hijack an airplane—a symbol for the Palestinian cause.
  • She sought a frontline role in militancy, rare for women in the Arab world at the time. Burke interviewed her at length in Amman.

• Media Performance:

  • (15:26) “Some of those hijackings were really partly staged for the TV cameras...there was violence...but it was about...the images and the new world of television.” — Gordon Carrera
  • These “skyjackings” were as much about spectacle as about substantive change, capitalizing on global media attention.

• Memorable Anecdotes:

  • Khaled became such a celebrity that the PFLP leader ordered her to do more interviews to maintain the group’s media profile.
  • Burke highlights the almost “benign” aftermath of Khaled’s imprisonment in England, noting her “sweet messages” to police officers and her mother.
  • (13:48) “She wrote rather sweet messages to her mum from Ealing’s police station...thanking the policeman for the stay in this nice hotel.” — Jason Burke

4. Ulrike Meinhof & The Baader-Meinhof Gang

• Trajectory from Journalism to Militancy:

  • Meinhof, once a respected left-wing journalist, transitioned from articulate critique to direct violent action, influenced by the radical climate and her associations with Andreas Baader and Gudrun Ensslin.
  • Her split-second decision to go underground marked the end of her public life and the beginning of a deeply tragic period.

• Complex Motives:

  • Meinhof was motivated by anger at Germany's failure to confront its Nazi past and a desire to address systemic injustice—her suicide in 1976 symbolized the end of “the big left-wing moment in Europe.”
  • (29:45) “She ends that...period, and Meinhof’s suicide basically marks the end of that first period and that big left-wing moment in Europe.” — Jason Burke

• Living on the Run:

  • Highlighted how the pre-digital, pre-surveillance era enabled fugitives to disappear far more easily than today.
  • (30:35) “There’s no way of getting to you...if no policeman recognizes you, you can survive.” — Jason Burke

5. Carlos the Jackal: Myth vs. Reality

• Construction of a Legend:

  • “Carlos the Jackal,” actually Illich Ramírez Sánchez, derived much of his fearsome reputation from media mythmaking rather than operational competence.
  • The nickname came from a passport and a Frederick Forsyth novel found in his safe house.

• Talent for Manipulation:

  • Burke describes Carlos’s “phenomenal” ability to charm, network, and persuade—whether recruiting bombers or seducing women.
  • Even in prison, Carlos attempted to charm Burke himself through a strange correspondence.
  • (34:18) “He’s still in this sort of slightly—you know, it’s that kind of Terry-Thomas style, ‘Hello! I am the famous Carlos the Jackal...’” — Jason Burke

• The Power of Image:

  • Despite repeated failures and betrayals, Carlos survived by leveraging his media aura.
  • Organizations overlooked his flaws because he brought them notoriety, often showing up to meetings with a thick stack of press clippings.
  • (35:27) “The leader...doesn’t want to shoot him...because he's a hero. He's got this media aura, and…press cuttings are worth much more than a successful terrorist attack.” — Jason Burke

• Debunking the Network:

  • Files from East German intelligence reveal that the feared “network” of operatives amounted in reality to a handful of people, not the hundreds the media suggested.
  • (38:22) “You've got these Stasi reports saying...they have hundreds of operatives around the world...They had like five.” — Jason Burke

6. The Role of Theater, Image, and Performance in Terrorism

• “Terrorism is Theater”:

  • Many of these figures, like Mohammed Budia, had theatrical or literary backgrounds—suggesting a penchant for “performance” baked into their approach to politics.
  • Burke cautions against “over-glamorizing,” but argues for a nuanced understanding: violent, yes; but also often cultured, strategic, almost artistic.

• Exploding Press Releases:

  • Bombings were sometimes less about causing casualties than acting as “exploding press releases"— creating a spectacle designed to disrupt, draw attention, and communicate a message.
  • (43:08) “There’s a description of some of the bombs the American groups were planting as exploding press releases...trying to use public violence...to communicate a message, but also just to disrupt.” — Jason Burke

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Leila Khaled’s constructed celebrity:

  • (13:27) “[The PFLP] had decided that to have a young striking woman out there hijacking would be great for them...She was very much sort of constructed as the public face of the PFLP.” — Jason Burke

• On the performative nature of 1970s terrorism:

  • (15:43) "They were trying to cut through all the time and get that attention for the group, for their cause, and they're successful in getting that attention. Whether it helps them in the long run or not is another matter." — Jason Burke

• On Carlos the Jackal’s mythmaking:

  • (34:33) “Press cuttings about him. Yeah, obviously. Which was his other insight, which was, you know, it's the message that matters...and he absolutely understood this.” — Jason Burke

• On resisting glamourization but insisting on depth:

  • (39:34) “You don’t want to glamorize them...but you do need to understand who they were.” — Jason Burke

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:28–04:05] – Jason Burke describes his motivation for writing about the 1970s
• [08:00–09:26] – Why telling these stories through characters is essential
• [09:10–15:26] – Leila Khaled’s biography and the cult of celebrity among early hijackers
• [15:26–17:56] – The performative nature of hijackings and media strategy
• [22:29–29:45] – Ulrike Meinhof, her radicalization, and the Baader-Meinhof Gang
• [31:42–38:35] – Carlos the Jackal: myth, manipulation, and the reality behind the legend
• [39:34–43:08] – The fine line between demystifying and glamorizing revolutionaries; role of performance in terrorism

Conclusion

Burke and Carrera’s conversation lays bare the complexities of 1970s extremism, showing how performance, media, and personal charisma intertwined with violence to shape a new kind of political disruption. The episode combines gripping anecdotes and deep analysis, debunking myths while revealing the real motivations and cultural contexts behind the era’s most infamous revolutionaries.

For further reading or follow-up debate, visit intelligencesquared.com.
End of part one.