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November 28, 2001
Three killed in terror attacks. Afula rampage kills 2, wounds more than 40
DAVID RUDGE
Michal Mor, 25, of Afula, and Noam Guzovsky, 23, of Moshav Ramat Zvi, were shot dead and more than 40 wounded - four of them seriously - by two Palestinian terrorists in Afula yesterday.
The two gunmen were chased by police and soldiers from the central bus station, where they began their rampage, into the market nearly half a kilometer away, where they were shot dead.
A statement claiming responsibility for the attack said it was a joint operation between a member of Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat's Fatah and one from Islamic Jihad.
The terrorists were identified as Mustafa Abu Srieh of Islamic Jihad, a member of Tawfik Tirawi's General Intelligence, and Abdel Karim Abu Nafa, who served in the Palestinian Police in Jericho. Both were 19 and residents of the Jenin refugee camp.
The announcement, initially carried on Hizbullah's Manar TV station, said the attack was to avenge last Friday's killing of Hamas terrorist Mahmoud Abu Hanoud.
Mor was buried in Afula late last night. Thousands of people attended the funeral, where the government was represented by Interior Minister Eli Yishai.
The funeral of Guzovsky, who only recently returned from a trip to the US after he had completed his army service, had not been announced by press time.
His parents said they had decided to donate his organs and that if this helped save lives, it would at least go some way to easing their loss.
The terror that hit Afula for the second time in less than two months began at 11:30 a.m., when the two gunmen parked their stolen car near the central bus station.
According to eyewitnesses, they almost immediately began firing their Kalashnikov rifles at drivers, then moved toward the station and then toward the market, firing in all directions as they went.
One man who saw the attack from his office said it was like a computer game with characters firing all over the place.
Some eyewitnesses reported that the terrorists had a 'free hand' for several minutes before police arrived. Others said police were on the scene within moments.
The market itself was closed yesterday and there were only a few people about, which residents said had helped minimize casualties.
The attack also came shortly after the pullout of the IDF from Jenin. Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer came under fire from some ministers for giving the go ahead for the withdrawal while there were warnings of terror attacks from Jenin.
Security sources, however, noted that the IDF had retained its deployment around the sections of Jenin closest to the Green Line and that the closure remains in place.
Police Insp.-Gen. Shlomo Aharonishky, talking to reporters in Afula, maintained that it would be wrong to see a connection between the IDF pullout and the attack. He noted that there had been attempted attacks by terrorists originating from Jenin while the IDF had been in the city.
He also praised the actions of the police, saying their prompt response had undoubtedly saved many lives.
'We are talking about a serious attack, with two people killed and around 40 wounded, most of them lightly or from shock, although among them are also 10 suffering from moderate to serious wounds as a result of the shooting,' he said.
'It could have ended worse, with many more fatalities and wounded, had it not been for the speedy and determined response of police from the Yoav unit, the Border Police, and other policemen who raced to the scene and succeeded in a few minutes in killing the terrorists.'
The stolen car which the terrorists used was blown-up by police sappers in case it was booby-trapped.
There were initial reports that a third terrorist had been seen in the area, but this was dismissed by the head of the Ammakim district, Dep.-Cmdr. Dov Lutzky.
Magen David Adom crews were quickly at the scene and took the wounded to nearby Ha'emek Hospital, where four were reported in serious-to-critical condition, two in serious, and another four in good condition. The remainder were suffering from light wounds or shock and most were sent home after treatment.
The area of the attack was cordoned off and a police helicopter was brought in. The area of the attack was opened later but security remained high, also in Hadera, at the entrances to Haifa, the Wadi Ara highway, and other parts of the North.
This followed the discovery by Border Police of a bomb near the Green Line, east of Umm el-Fahm. Two Palestinians found in the area were detained. The bomb, one of several that have been discovered in the area in the past few months, was safely neutralized by sappers.
It was revealed that police in the North have been on heightened alert since last Friday, apparently because of warnings of a pending terror attack. It is believed that those involved in the Afula shooting had been planning a similar attack near Haifa.
Senior police sources said the heightened security is likely to remain in force for the next few days. Motorists are asked to be patient in light of roadblocks and security checks, and police reiterated calls to immediately report any suspicious people, objects, or vehicles.
In Memoriam
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