The Beit Lid suicide bombing, (also named Beit Lid massacre)[3][4][5][6] saw two Palestinian suicide attacks by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad against Israeli soldiers at the Beit Lid Junction on January 22, 1995. 21 soldiers and one civilian were killed. It was the first suicide attack by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
| Beit Lid suicide bombing | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict | |
 The attack aftermath | |
  The attack site | |
| Native name | הפיגוע בצומת בית ליד |
| Location | Beit Lid Junction, Highway 4/Highway 57, Netanya, Israel |
| Coordinates | 32°19′25″N 34°54′14″E / 32.32361°N 34.90389°E |
| Date | January 22, 1995 c. 9:30 am (UTC+2) |
Attack type | Suicide attack |
| Weapons | Suicide belts |
| Deaths | (+2 suicide bombers) |
| Injured | 66 Israelis, mostly soldiers |
| Perpetrator | Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility |
| Assailants | Anwar Soukar & Salah Shaaker |
No. of participants | 2 |
Background
editIn 1994, Hani Abed, a Palestinian Islamic Jihad operative, brokered an alliance between Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. (Hani was later assassinated by Israel). As part of the alliance, Hamas's chief bombmaker, Yahya Ayyash, built the three bombs used by Islamic Jihad for the Beit Lid suicide attack. Each was made using plumber's pipe (one foot long and eight inches (203 mm) wide) and five kilograms of military-grade TNT, surrounded by nails.[7]
The Beit Lid junction is a well-known waypoint towards Netanya. Strategically, it is an important crossroads between Tel Aviv and Haifa located on Highway 4. "On Sunday mornings, Beit Lid was swamped with thousands of young soldiers and aging reservists heading back to military duty from weekend leaves".[7] Ashmoret Prison is located in the southwest corner of the Beit Lid junction. At the time of the bombing, Ahmed Yassin, founder of Hamas, was being held there.[7]
The attack
editOn 22 January 1995, at approximately 9:30 am, a Palestinian suicide bomber, disguised as an Israeli soldier, approached the bus stop at the Beit Lid junction in central Israel. The bus stop was full of Israeli soldiers who were on their way to their bases after their weekend vacation. The suicide bomber walked into the crowd and detonated the hidden explosives belt he was wearing. About three minutes later a second suicide bomber exploded at the same spot, killing and injuring people wounded in the first explosion, as well as bystanders who had rushed to the scene to assist the victims of the first explosion.[citation needed]
Aftermath
editIsraeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin toured the bombing site the next day, walking within yards of a kit bag containing a third bomb. Shaaker had left it there for a third suicide bomber, Shahdi Abed al-Rahim, who never made it to the junction. al-Rahim was to have used the bomb to kill Rabin and the Shabak agents accompanying him. The bomb was later recovered, and provided investigators with more evidence implicating Ayyash.[8]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ https://embassies.gov.il/MFA/FOREIGNPOLICY/Terrorism/Palestinian/Pages/Suicide%20and%20Other%20Bombing%20Attacks%20in%20Israel%20Since.aspx
- ^ https://embassies.gov.il/MFA/FOREIGNPOLICY/Terrorism/Palestinian/Pages/Suicide%20and%20Other%20Bombing%20Attacks%20in%20Israel%20Since.aspx
- ^ "But after the Beit Lid massacre, the government approved the construction and sale of 4000 units in occupied land around Jerusalem." Beyer, Lisa. "Can Peace Survive", Time, February 6, 1995.
- ^ "When Arafat called Rabin to express his condolences on the Beit Lid massacre, the prime minister was understandably furious." Karsh, Efraim, Arafat's War: The Man and His Battle for Israeli Conquest, Grove Press, 2003, p. 116. ISBN 0-8021-1758-9
- ^ "The reaction of peace processors in Jerusalem and Washington to the Beit Lid massacre, in which Islamic suicide bombers wiped out a score of Israelis, has been shock, anger, sorrow -- but a determination that terrorist attacks not be allowed to stop the peace process." Safire, William. "Essay; Responding to Terror", The New York Times, January 26, 1995.
- ^ "President Ezer Weizman, a super-dove who initially supported the agreement wholeheartedly, called for a temporary suspension of talks following the Beit Lid massacre on January 22 and again after the February 6 killing in Gaza." Bar-Ilan, David. "Rain of terror - Israeli politics", National Review, March 6, 1995, p. 2.
- ^ a b c Katz, 166-167
- ^ Katz, 168
Bibliography
edit- Katz, Samuel. The Hunt for the Engineer. Lyons Press, 2002. ISBN 1-58574-749-1
External links
edit
- "Suicide bomb kills 19 at Israel road junction". Boston Herald. January 23, 1995
- "Two-Stage Bombing Kills 19 At Israeli Military Bus Stop". The Washington Post. January 23, 1995
- "Blast kills 19 in Israel". Sun Journal. January 23, 1995
- "Double Bombing Kills 19 Israelis, Wounds 60". Times Daily. January 23, 1995
- "Interview With a Fanatic". Time. February 6, 1995