"He has tried many, many times to be in contact with me," Spitzer said of Abu Daoud.

"He wants to meet me, he wants to talk to me, he wants to explain to me that the Palestinians never wanted to do this to the Israelis."

In an interview with the Daily News, Spitzer said Abu Daoud had even invited her to meet with him in Syria.

"What does he think, that I'm going to have a little coffee with him and exchange kisses with the cameras zooming?"

Spitzer was 26 and had a 5-month-old baby when Palestinian terrorists stormed the Olympic Village in Munich. Two Israelis were killed during the initial attack. Nine others were taken hostage but died in a shootout during a botched rescue attempt by German police.

Among them was 27-year-old fencing coach Andre Spitzer.

Abu Daoud, also known as Mohammed Daoud Oudeh, admitted in a 1999 book, "Memoirs of a Palestinian Terrorist," that he was the planner of the operation.

He is one of the few people connected to the attack to survive. Most of the others either died in the shootout with German cops or were hunted down and killed by Israeli agents - a story retold by Steven Spielberg in his new movie, "Munich."

Ankie Spitzer and Ilana Romano - widow of weightlifter Josef Romano, who died in the initial struggle with the terrorists - attended a private screening of Spielberg's movie in Tel Aviv last week.

"Before we saw the film we were terribly frightened," Romano said. "We wanted to know what use would be made of the memory of our husbands, sons, fathers who were murdered in Munich. It was important to see how they would be portrayed and whether their honor would be respected." She said the film treats the slain athletes "appropriately."

"I can't say we were happy - it's impossible to be happy - but we were relieved," she said. Looking back at the events of September 1972 and their aftermath, Spitzer says Israel had "no choice" but to go after the terrorists in order to prevent more attacks.

She is not interested in hearing excuses from Abu Daoud - or in seeking vengeance on him. "I don't ask for his assassination. I ask for his trial," she said. "He didn't pay the price for what he did."

Spitzer recalls watching on television 33 years ago as her husband shouted to German authorities from the window of the apartment where he and the other hostages were being held.

"At least I knew he was still alive at that point," she said. "Then one of the terrorists appeared behind him and appeared to hit him with the butt of his gun. He disappeared from view. That was the last time I saw him."

Originally published on December 25, 2005