Haifa bus 37 suicide bombing

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Haifa bus 37 suicide bombing
Part of the Second Intifada militancy campaign
Autobus v Haife.jpg
The attack aftermath
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The attack site
Native nameהפיגוע בקו 37
Location Haifa, Israel
Coordinates 32°47′50″N34°59′03″E / 32.79722°N 34.98417°E / 32.79722; 34.98417
Date5 March 2003;22 years ago (2003-03-05)
Target Bus
Attack type
 Suicide attack
Weapon Suicide vest
Deaths17 (+ 1 bomber)
Injured53
Perpetrator Hamas
Participant1

The Haifa bus 37 suicide bombing was a Palestinian suicide bombing carried out on 5 March 2003 on an Egged bus in Haifa, Israel. 17 passengers were killed in the attack and 53 were injured. [1] Many of the victims were university students from nearby Haifa University. [2]

Contents

Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack. The bomber was 20-year-old Mahmoud Umdan Salim Qawasmeh, a student at the Palestine Polytechnic University. An Israeli Arab resident of Haifa who helped plan the attack was also tried and sentenced to life imprisonment for his involvement. [3]

The attack

The attack occurred on 5 March 2003, when a suicide bomber from Hebron detonated a bomb hidden underneath his clothes on a bus carrying many children and teenagers on their way home from school. [4] The bus exploded as it was pulling out of station on Moriyah Street, a main traffic artery near the Carmeliya neighborhood, heading from the Bat Galim neighborhood to the University of Haifa. The explosion occurred while the bus was packed with commuters. The attack killed 17 people and wounded 53. [5] Police said the bomb, strapped to the bomber's body, was laden with metal shrapnel in order to maximize the number of injuries. [1]

Aftermath

Memorial for the attack victims Monument 1 of the 37 bus line terror attack.jpg
Memorial for the attack victims

Spokesmen from Hamas and Islamic Jihad praised the attack. "We will not stop our resistance," said Abd al-Aziz Rantisi of Hamas. "We are not going to give up in the face of the daily killing of Palestinians." [5] In response, Israeli helicopters killed Hamas leader Ibrahim al-Makadmeh and three of his bodyguards. [6]

On 18 October 2011, Israel released three people convicted of planning the attack, Maedh Waal Taleb Abu Sharakh (19 life sentences), Majdi Muhammad Ahmed Amr (19 life sentences) and Fadi Muhammad Ibrahim al-Jaaba (18 life sentences), as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange. [7] [8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Suicide bombing of Egged bus No. 37 in Haifa March 5, 2003". Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs . 5 March 2003. Archived from the original on 28 April 2003.
  2. ↑ Rudge, David (6 March 2003). "Haifa bus bomber kills 15, wounds dozens. Hamas terrorist carried letter praising 9/11 attacks in US; most casualties are students". The Jerusalem Post . Archived from the original on 8 November 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  3. ↑ "מאסר עולם לערבי ישראלי שסייע לפיגוע בחיפה" [Life sentence for Israeli Arab who aided in Haifa terror attack]. Walla! (in Hebrew). Haaretz. 12 January 2004. Archived from the original on 3 May 2005. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  4. ↑ Urquhart, Conal (6 March 2003). "Mother tells of last call as families mourn bus bomb children". The Guardian . Jerusalem. Archived from the original on 27 August 2013.
  5. 1 2 Urquhart, Conal (6 March 2003). "Israel attacks Gaza as bus bomb kills 15". The Guardian . Haifa. Archived from the original on 27 August 2013.
  6. ↑ Murphy, Jarrett (9 March 2003). "Hamas Vows To Avenge Leader's Death". CBS News . Archived from the original on 22 August 2016.
  7. ↑ Lappin, Yaakov (16 October 2011). "Prisoner list includes planners of mass atrocities". The Jerusalem Post . Archived from the original on 19 October 2011. Retrieved 19 October 2011.
  8. ↑ "List Of Security Prisoners - 15.10.11". Cabinet of Israel . 15 October 2011. Archived from the original (xls) on 30 October 2011.
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