israelinsider: security: Terror strikes again in Rishon Letzion: 2 killed and 40 injured

Terror strikes again in Rishon Letzion: 2 killed and 40 injured in suicide attack
By Ellis Shuman May 23, 2002


		05/23 2 killed, 40 wounded by Rishon suicide bomber Jerusalem Post 05/23 Rishon Letzion suicide attack leaves two dead, 41 wounded Ha'aretz 05/23 Suicide bomber kills 2 Israelis in attack near Tel Aviv New York Times (reg. req'd)


		Sign up for our weekly newsletter! E-mail

Police and rescue workers escort a wounded man away from where a suicide bomber struck in Rishon Letzion, killing 2 Israelis. (AP)


	Sharon cuts short U.S. trip after suicide bomber kills 15 in Rishon Letzion

	5 Israelis killed in attacks on Tel Aviv restaurant, Afula bus and Gush Etzion car

	The heroes of Hadera prevented a more terrible tragedy

	Palestinian terrorist attacks Israeli bat-mitzvah celebration, killing 6

Two Israelis were killed and nearly 40 injured last night when a suicide bomber with a blond "punk" haircut and European appearance detonated a belt packed with explosives and nails on a pedestrian mall in Rishon Letzion. The bombing was the second attack in the city in two weeks. Arafat's Fatah Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade claimed credit. Earlier, IDF tank fire killed a senior Tanzim military commander and two aides near Nablus.

The two victims of the suicide bombing were identified as Gary Targinyanski, 65, and Elmar Dejavrialov, 16, both residents of Rishon Letzion. On May 7, 15 Israelis were killed and 53 injured when a suicide bomber exploded inside the city's Sheffield Club, a billiards hall used for illegal gambling.

Shortly after 9 p.m. last night, a terrorist

"I saw people lying on the ground, crying and bleeding"
- eyewitness Aryeh Mimon

arrived at the corner of Herzl and Rothschild Streets in the center of Rishon Letzion. At the end of the Gan Ha'ir public park there, elderly city residents, new immigrants and foreign workers regularly gather at tables in an open-air pavilion for games of cards, backgammon and chess.

"According to eyewitnesses, he had a Western European appearance and had short, dyed blonde hair, like that of a punk and certainly not like an Arab," said Shfela District police chief Asst.-Cmdr. Haim Cohen. "I believe he disguised himself so that he would not stand out in the environment.

Police officers estimate that the terrorist was wearing a belt containing 6 to 7 kilograms (13 - 15.5 lbs.) of explosives, and a large quantity of nails. Police launched a widespread search for a green car reported speeding away shortly before the blast.

"I was walking near there and all of a sudden I heard a large boom," said Lior Yifrah. "I was injured in the head, and ran away. I was also injured in the Sheffield attack in Rishon Letzion two weeks ago. I don't know how it is that luck saved me twice."

Eyewitness Aryeh Mimon said, "I am in shock. It happened right in front of my eyes. There was a huge flash, and immediately I saw people lying on the ground, crying and bleeding."

"Most of the people around Gan Ha'ir were older new immigrants playing chess," said MK Avi Yehezkel (Labor), who was visiting his parents in Rishon Letzion at the time of the attack. "I saw a number of bodies; it was an awful scene. If they can come to our homes and spill the blood of people who were playing chess a moment before, this means there is no peace. My mother and father are here every night, but not tonight," he told the Itim news agency.

The Palestinian Authority issued a statement condemning the Rishon Letzion attack. The statement called on all Palestinians to "declare their condemnation of such terrorist attacks" and said the bombing gives Israel an "excuse to continue its aggression (against) our people."

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade, affiliated with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat's Fatah party, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying that it was in response to Israel's targeted killing of the organization's militant commander in the northern West Bank, Mahmoud Titi, two hours earlier.

Senior Al-Aqsa commander killed in cemetery near Nablus
Senior Al-Aqsa military commander Mahmoud Titi, 30, and two of his aides were killed Wednesday night by IDF tank fire near Nablus. Palestinian sources said that Israeli tanks positioned on a hill overlooking the Balata refugee camp fired shells at Titi, who was hiding in a cemetery near the camp.

In a statement released by the IDF, the army said it had "managed to target Mahmud Titi, a leading terror operative in the Tanzim organization, and wanted by the Israeli security forces."

The IDF Spokesman said that Titi was responsible for the terrorist shooting attack at Tel Aviv's Seafood Market restaurant in March, in which three Israelis were killed; the shooting attack at a bat mitzvah party in Hadera in January, in which six Israelis were killed; and a shooting attack in Jerusalem in January, which killed two and injured 31 people.

Palestinians identified the other two people killed as Iyad Abu Hamdan, 22, and Imad Al-Khatib, 25. Israeli forces withdrew from Palestinian territories at the end of the operation.