George Curtis Moore
Encyclopedia
George Curtis Moore was an American diplomat who was assassinated during a terrorist attack on the United States embassy in Khartoum
, Sudan
.
. A U.S. Interest Section was established in the Netherlands embassy. Moore, a career foreign service officer, was assigned to the U.S. Interest Section as Principal Officer in July, 1969. He was an Arabist by training.
Upon the re-opening of the U.S. Embassy on July 25, 1972, Moore became Chargé d'Affaires ad interim, which is the title given to the person acting as interim ambassador.
terrorists, part of the "Black September
" group, stormed the Saudi Embassy during a reception for in-coming U.S. Ambassador Cleo A. Noel, Jr.
. Several ambassadors, including the Russia
n, British, and French ambassadors and the Papal Nuncio escaped during the mayhem. The French ambassador escaped by climbing the embassy walls. The next day, Moore, was shot and murdered. Noel and Belgian diplomat, Guy Eid, were also murdered. The terrorists surrender and were sentenced to jail. They were deported prior to serving their sentences.
Moore is buried at Arlington National Cemetery
near Washington, D.C.
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
, Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
.
Diplomatic career in Sudan
Moore was the principal foreign service officer in the United States Interest Section in Khartoum. The U.S. Embassy closed in 1967 during the Six-Day WarSix-Day War
The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...
. A U.S. Interest Section was established in the Netherlands embassy. Moore, a career foreign service officer, was assigned to the U.S. Interest Section as Principal Officer in July, 1969. He was an Arabist by training.
Upon the re-opening of the U.S. Embassy on July 25, 1972, Moore became Chargé d'Affaires ad interim, which is the title given to the person acting as interim ambassador.
Assassination
On March 1, 1973, PalestinianPalestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
terrorists, part of the "Black September
Black September (group)
The Black September Organization was a Palestinian paramilitary group, founded in 1970. It was responsible for the kidnapping and murder of eleven Israeli athletes and officials, and fatal shooting of a West German policeman, during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, their most publicized event...
" group, stormed the Saudi Embassy during a reception for in-coming U.S. Ambassador Cleo A. Noel, Jr.
Cleo A. Noel, Jr.
Cleo Allen Noel, Jr. was a United States ambassador to Sudan who was murdered by the Black September Palestinian terrorist organization in the 1973 attack on the Saudi embassy in Khartoum.-Early life:...
. Several ambassadors, including the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n, British, and French ambassadors and the Papal Nuncio escaped during the mayhem. The French ambassador escaped by climbing the embassy walls. The next day, Moore, was shot and murdered. Noel and Belgian diplomat, Guy Eid, were also murdered. The terrorists surrender and were sentenced to jail. They were deported prior to serving their sentences.
Moore is buried at Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
near Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....