January 30, 2004

Eleven killed, 50 hurt in suicide bus bombing

ETGAR LEFKOVITS

A Palestinian Authority policeman blew himself up on a crowded Jerusalem bus not far from Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s official residence Thursday morning, killing 11 people and wounding 50 others.

So badly maimed were the dead that their names were released nearly 10 hours after the blast.

Those killed were identified as Eli Tzfira, 48, of Jerusalem; Manbara Valdi Tzadik, 35 of Jerusalem, Hanna Anya Bonder, 38, of Jerusalem; Baruch Hundiashvilli, 38, of Jerusalem; Dana Ita, 24, of Jerusalem; Avraham Albert Balahson, 29, of Jerusalem; Roz Bona, 39, of Jerusalem; Vidal Octavian Florescu, 41, of Jerusalem; Natalia Gamril, 50, of Jerusalem; Anat Darom of Jerusalem; and Toronto-born sociologist Dr. Yechezkel Goldberg, 42, of Betar Illit.

The 11th victim’s name was not released by press time.

Goldberg, who worked with hundreds of needy children, was a Jewish Press columnist.

Fatah’s Al-Aksa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility and identified the bomber as Ali Jaara, 24, a PA policeman from the Aida refugee camp on the outskirts of Bethlehem.

Jaara left a note saying that he wanted to avenge the deaths of 10 Palestinians — including five Islamic Jihad and Hamas gunmen — killed in fierce gun battles with soldiers in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday.

The attack, the 109th suicide bombing during the last three years, occurred while US envoys David Satterfield and John Wolf were meeting with Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz.

In an initial reaction, Israel postponed a planned Thursday night meeting on the humanitarian crisis in the PA areas that was to include the US, PA, and international donors, but decided against imposing a full closure on the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Mofaz said that, while steps would be taken against terrorist organizations, Israel would try to avoid moves that will exacerbate the lives of ordinary Palestinians.

Sharon and Mofaz met with security officials late Thursday night to discuss the response to the attack.

The 8:50 a. m. bombing completely gutted the No. 19 bus as it travelled on Rehov Aza (Gaza Road). Police estimate the bomb contained seven kilograms of explosives and was packed with metal objects to increase its lethality.

"There was a large boom, and then an incredible silence as if nothing had happened, as quiet as a Shabbat morning," recalled Jerusalem Post editor-in-chief Bret Stephens, who lives just down the block and rushed to the scene.

His wife saw the roof of the bus lifted over an adjacent house by the force of the blast.

"There were corpses inside and outside of the bus, people with their legs and faces bleeding profusely, amid pieces of human flesh strewn all over the place," he said.

The bus was about mid-way through its route from Hadassah-University Hospital, Ein Kerem, to the Hebrew University’s Mount Scopus campus.

After boarding the bus on Rehov Aza, the bomber made his way toward the back and detonated his explosives.

Eyewitnesses recalled a loud blast — "an earthquake" as several bystanders described it — several minutes of intense silence, then the screams of the wounded.

"It was like a pastoral scene — the sun was shining and it was serene outside — but the bus was a nightmare. Bodies were sitting in their chairs, burned, motionless," said eyewitness Drora Resnick.

"In one second, everything went black, and I understood that the world had changed,‘ recalled passenger Ilya, 19, from his bed in Bikur Holim Hospital. ’It took me a few seconds to realize I could move and get up," he said.

Dror Duga, 17, was walking to school with a friend when he saw the bus explode. "People flew out of the roof. Then the people in the buildings started screaming. There were pieces of flesh on the ground, hands and a head," he said.

Bus driver Shalom Zakin, who was lightly wounded, said from his bed at Shaare Zedek Hospital that he had not noticed anyone suspicious boarding. The 34-year Egged veteran was so dazed that he could not even remember how many years he has worked for the company.

In a scene from a horror movie, family members ran down the street in a frantic search for their loved ones, often collapsing in the arms of passersby and security personnel. People sat dazed and crying on the street corners. Some eyewitnesses recalled details of clothing of the dead — the black shoes or the brown socks they were wearing.

Jerusalem police chief Cmdr. Mickey Levy told reporters there were no specific intelligence alerts over an impending attack in the capital, other than the routine general warnings in effect across the country.

"Today’s attack again proves that there has been no change in the strategy of the other side to carry out attacks," police Insp.-Gen. Shlomo Aharonishsky said, stressing that the relative calm over the last several months was the result of the ongoing work of the security forces in thwarting attacks.

Levy said the police have thwarted a number of attacks in Jerusalem recently, including three explosive belts that were seized in a raid in Abu Dis.

By late morning, the bus was towed away and Rehov Aza had reopened to traffic.

On Thursday night, 31 of the wounded remained hospitalized, including 13 in serious condition, hospital officials said.

In Memoriam

• Eli Tzfira, 48
• Manbara Valdi Tzadik, 35
• Hanna Anya Bonder, 38
• Baruch Hundiashvilli, 38
• Dana Ita, 24
• Avraham Albert Balahson, 29
• Roz Bona, 39
• Vidal Octavian Florescu, 41
• Natalia Gamril, 50
• Anat Darom, 23
• Dr. Yechezkel Goldberg, 42

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