Based on the controversial John Adams opera, this film recounts the true story of a 1985 hijacking. The cruise ship "Achille Lauro" is sailing in the Mediterranean when, while docked in Alexandria, a maid discovers four passengers are disguised members of the Palestine Liberation Organization. These PLO operatives take the passengers hostage, demanding the release of 50 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. As Egyptian, American, Italian, and Palestinian authorities struggle to respond, the hijackers face unrest among their captives. A confrontation between the four PLO members and Leon Klinghoffer, a Jewish-American passenger in a wheelchair, escalates into violence.
