A twin suicide bombing of an Egged bus occurred in the French Hill settlement of northern

East Jerusalem East Jerusalem (, ; , ) is the sector of Jerusalem that was held by Jordan during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, as opposed to the western sector of the city, West Jerusalem, which was held by Israel. Jerusalem was envisaged as a separat ...

on 18 May 2003. Seven passengers were killed in the attack, and 20 injured. A few minutes after the first attack, a second

suicide bomber A suicide attack is any violent Strike (attack), attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has suicide, accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have oc ...

blew himself up at the entrance to the village of Dahiya el-Barid, near

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. Only the bomber was killed in what appeared to be a premature detonation.

The attacks

The first attack took place at 5:45 am, during the morning rush hour, when a Palestinian suicide bomber disguised as a

Haredi Haredi Judaism ( he, ', ; also spelled ''Charedi'' in English; plural ''Haredim'' or ''Charedim'') consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict adherence to ''halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions, in oppos ...

detonated a nail-studded explosive belt strapped to his body on a No. 6 passenger bus near the French Hill settlement of northern

. Seven civilians were killed in the attack, including four Russian immigrants and an Arab resident of Jerusalem. In addition, 20 were injured in the attack, four of them seriously. A few minutes after the first attack, another suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance to the village of Dahiya el-Barid, near Jerusalem. Only the bomber was killed in what appeared to be a premature detonation.

The perpetrator

Although there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, relatives of 19-year-old

Hamas Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Bri ...

activist Bassem Jamil Tarkrouri, who originated from

Hebron Hebron ( ar, الخليل or ; he, חֶבְרוֹן ) is a Palestinian. city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judaean Mountains, it lies above sea level. The second-largest city in the West Bank (after East J ...

, officially identified him as the perpetrator of the attack.

Official reactions

;Involved parties : Israeli officials spoke about the bombings, stating they "will continue to fight terror everywhere, at any time and in any way possible". : *

Palestinian National Authority The Palestinian National Authority (PA or PNA; ar, السلطة الوطنية الفلسطينية '), commonly known as the Palestinian Authority and officially the State of Palestine,

– PNA officials condemned the bombings. ; International * – Secretary of State

Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who served as the 65th United States Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African ...

spoke about the bombings, stating "we in the strongest possible terms the horrific terrorist bombing." * – Russian officials condemned the attack, and called on the international community to "intensify efforts to combat terrorism and activate peace efforts for the Mideast".Bahrain News Agency , Russia condemns terrorist attacks in Israel
/ref>

References

External links

Jerusalem rocked by 2 suicide bombings
– published in ''

The San Diego Union-Tribune ''The San Diego Union-Tribune'' is a metropolitan daily newspaper published in San Diego, California, that has run since 1868. Its name derives from a 1992 merger between the two major daily newspapers at the time, ''The San Diego Union'' and ...

'' on 18 May 2003 {{DEFAULTSORT:French Hill suicide bombing, 2003 Mass murder in 2003 Suicide bombings in 2003 Hamas suicide bombings of buses Terrorist incidents in Asia in 2003 2003 in Jerusalem May 2003 events in Asia Terrorist incidents in Jerusalem in the 2000s French Hill (settlement) Israeli casualties in the Second Intifada 21st-century mass murder in Jerusalem Improvised explosive device bombings in Jerusalem 2000s road incidents in Asia 2003 road incidents May 2003 crimes

The attacks

The perpetrator

Official reactions

See also

References

External links