2002 Hadera attack
On Thursday, January 17, 2002 a Palestinian gunman, 24-year-old Abdul Salaam Sadek Hassouneh, killed six people and wounded 33 at a bat mitzvah celebration in Hadera, Israel.[1][2]
| 2002 Hadera attack | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Second Intifada militancy campaign | |
  The attack site | |
| Native name | הפיגוע באולם ארמון דוד |
| Location | Hadera, Israel |
| Coordinates | 32°26′18″N 34°55′32″E |
| Date | January 17, 2002 c. 9:45 PM (GMT+2) |
Attack type | Mass shooting, massacre, murder-suicide, suicide bombing |
| Weapons | M16 assault rifle |
| Deaths | 6 civilians (+1 perpetrator) |
| Injured | 33 civilians |
| Perpetrator | al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility |
| Assailant | Abdul Salaam Sadek Hassouneh |
Attack
The attack took place at 9:45 pm (GMT+2) as guests were departing.[3] The al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades assumed responsibility for the attack, claiming it was vengeance for the killing of its leader Raed Karmi. An Israeli police spokesman said the man, apparently on a suicide mission, had thrown several grenades into the Armon David wedding hall, where the Bat Mitzvah celebration had taken place, and detonated explosives on himself. A belt filled with explosives was found on the attacker.[1]
Media coverage
Al Jazeera was criticized for bias in coverage of the massacre for not including in their coverage that the victims were attending a bat mitzvah and that the gunman crashed the event at a crowded banquet hall.[4]
Perpetrator
The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades said the attacker, 24-year-old Abdel Salam Hassouna, was from a village near Nablus and launched the attack to avenge the death of Raed Karmi.[1]
After the attack a video made earlier by the attacker was released, in which he is seen declaring: "I am doing this to avenge all the Palestinian martyrs."[4]
Official reactions
- Involved parties
Israel
Palestinian territories:
- The Palestinian Authority condemned the attack but blamed Israel for provoking it.[3]
- International
United States: the US government condemned the Hadera attack "in the strongest possible terms," calling it a "horrific act of terrorism."[3] The widow of the one American killed in the attack, Aharon Ellis, brought a lawsuit against the Palestinian Authority that received a $173 million default judgment in 2006, and in 2009 was settled out of court.[5]
See also
References
- Bat mitzvah massacre in Israel leaves seven dead, Phil Reeves, 18 January 2002
- Jackson, Brian A. (2007). Breaching the Fortress Wall: Understanding Terrorist Efforts to Overcome Defensive Technologies. Rand Corporation. ISBN 9780833039149.
- Gunman kills 6 Israelis; jets fire missiles in response, January 18, 2002. CNN
- Perspectives on war. Hickey, Neil, Columbia Journalism Review, March 1, 2002
- Gerstein, Josh (2 February 2010). "Palestinians reverse on terror victim". Politico. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
External links
- Seven killed in attack in Israel - published on BBC News on January 18, 2002
- Seven Suicide terrorist kills 6 at Bat Mitzvah in Israel Archived 2012-11-07 at the Wayback Machine - published on the New York Post on January 18, 2002
