A Wave of Suicide Bombings - May 17-19, 2003
- On Saturday evening, May 17, 2003 (19:15), Gadi and Dina Levy were killed by a suicide bomber while strolling in Gross Square in Hebron. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.
- On Sunday, May 18, 2003 (05:45), seven people were killed and 20 wounded in a suicide bombing on Egged bus no. 6 near French Hill in Jerusalem. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.
Half an hour later, a second suicide bomber was killed when he was intercepted by police at a road block in northern Jerusalem.
All three terrorists were students of the Polytechnic University in Hebron. - On Monday, May 19, 2003 (07:00), three IDF soldiers were lightly injured when a Palestinian on a bicycle detonated explosives next to a military jeep near Kfar Darom in the southern Gaza Strip. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.
- On Monday, May 19, 2003 (17:10), three people were killed and about 70 wounded in a suicide bombing at the entrance to the Amakim Mall in Afula. The Islamic Jihad and the Fatah al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades both claimed responsibility for the attack.
SUICIDE BOMBING IN HEBRON
(May 17, 2003)
May 17, 2003 - Gadi Levy, 31, and his wife Dina, of Kiryat Arba were killed by a suicide bomber in Hebron.
Gadi and Dina Levy were walking near Gross Square in Hebron at about 19:20 on Saturday evening when a suicide bomber wearing a white shirt like that of a yeshiva student came from the direction of the Abu Sneineh neighborhood. Nahal Brigade soldiers at a nearby position who were alerted by his behavior called out to him to stop. The bomber ignored their calls and detonated the bomb near the first people he encountered - the Levys.
Gadi died at the scene. Dina died shortly after arriving at Hadassah Hospital in Ein Kerem. The terrorist, who was killed in the explosion, was identified as Fuad al-Kawasma, a member of Hamas.
Gadi and Dina Levy were married about 18 months ago and settled in Kiryat Arba. Gadi, who previously lived in Tel Aviv, was working at the Kiryat Arba supermarket. This was Gadi's third marriage and Dina's second. Although Dina had two children from her previous marriage, they dreamt of having a child together.
Rafael Avitan, Gadi's boss at the supermarket, said, "We all attended their wedding at the Jerusalem Rabbinate and celebrated. Gadi was a special person, very dedicated to his wife and mother and always willing to help anyone who needed assistance. He was a very special person, he wanted so much to be a father. He loved children."
Gadi Levy was buried in Holon.
SUICIDE BOMBING OF EGGED BUS NO. 6, JERUSALEM
(May 18, 2003)
Rescue workers search remains of bus after Jerusalem bombing, in which seven were killed and 20 wounded.
The Victims:
Olga Brenner, 52, of Jerusalem was one of seven people killed in a suicide bombing on Egged bus no. 6 near French Hill in Jerusalem.
The bus bombing took place at 5:45 A.M. near the French Hill neighborhood in northern Jerusalem. The suicide bomber, disguised as a religious Jew, boarded the bus and detonated the bomb shortly afterwards. Seven passengers were killed and about 20 wounded.
Olga Brenner, who immigrated to Israel with her husband Gregory from Moldova six years ago, was a resident of the Pisgat Ze'ev neighborhood in northern Jerusalem. Their daughter Svetlana and her husband Andre joined them three years ago. Olga was on her way to work together with her daughter as cleaning women when she was killed. Svetlana was seriously injured.
Olga Brenner was buried in Jerusalem. She is survived by her husband Gregory, their daughter Svetlana and son Arkadi.
Yitzhak Moyal, 64, a resident of the Pisgat Ze'ev neighborhood in northern Jerusalem, was on his way to work at the central post office in downtown Jerusalem when he was killed.
Moyal immigrated to Israel from Morocco in 1960, together with his nine brothers and sisters. He was described by family members as a dedicated worker who never once missed a shift.
His son Sharon related, "Father was an honest man, devoted to his family and work. He was 64, but age doesn't mean anything. He was healthy, and when we walked together I would get tired half way." As an Egged driver in Jerusalem, Sharon knew that his father was always concerned for him, but never expressed fear for himself.
Yitzhak Moyal was buried in Jerusalem. He is survived by his wife Rina, four sons, two daughters and 12 grandchildren.
Nelly Perov, 55, a resident of the Pisgat Ze'ev neighborhood in northern Jerusalem, was on her way to work when she was killed.
Nelly immigrated to Israel exactly three years ago from Kazakhstan. On Saturday night she celebrated the occasion with her daughter Lana, with a bottle of champagne. Lana said, "My mother and I decided to come to Israel together. I wanted to study here, and she wanted to live with me." Her 35-year-old son, Andre, came to Israel before them and lives in Rishon Lezion with his family.
Nelly Perov was buried in Jerusalem. She is survived by her son Andre, 35, her daughter Lana, 20, and two grandchildren, aged 13 and 4 months.
Ghalab Tawil, 42, was on his way to work as a cleaning man at Hadassah Hospital in Ein Karem when he was killed. He left his home at the far end of the Shuafat refugee camp every morning at 5 A.M. to make the first bus to the hospital.
A construction worker by trade, he began to work at the hospital about a year ago in order to be close to his 13-year-old daughter Iman, who was being treated for leukemia, and was hospitalized for five months. He often did not come home but remained to sleep near her.
Married to two wives the the father of four sons and five daughters, Tawil was a quiet man who worked to support his family and took no interest in politics. One of his wives said angrily, "Anyone who explodes himself near innocent civilians is a murderer and a criminal."
Ghalab Tawil was buried in Shuafat. He is survived by his two wives and nine children.
Marina Tsahivershvili, 44, who immigrated to Israel from Georgia seven years ago, was a resident of the Pisgat Ze'ev neighborhood in northern Jerusalem. She was killed on her way to work in the kitchen at Shaare Zedek Hospital where she prepared breakfast for the children and the hospital's clinics for the past three and a half years. Her boss described her as a kind woman who was always willing to volunteer, being among the first to offer her help following previous terror attacks in Jerusalem.
Marina Tsahivershvili was buried in Jerusalem. She is survived by her mother, sister and two nieces. Her father passed away two months ago.
Shimon Ustinsky, 68, a resident of the Pisgat Ze'ev neighborhood in northern Jerusalem, was on his way to work as a parking garage attendant in the Old City of Jerusalem when he was killed. Ustinsky immigrated to Israel from Kiev in the Ukraine in 1991. Although he held a degree in economics and had been a lecturer in Kiev, he did not mind engaging in manual labor in Israel. He was happy and enjoyed traveling throughout the country.
Shimon Ustinsky was buried in Jerusalem. He is survived by his wife Alexandra, his son Sergei, 32, and daughter Zoya, 21, as well as two grandchildren, Yonatan and Anat.
Roni Yisraeli, 34, was on his way to work as deputy manager of the Har Nof Supersol supermarket when he was killed. The family had moved from Ma'ale Adumim to their new apartment in East Pisgat Ze'ev just a few months ago. His wife Siggi used the family car to go to work as a secretary in the Jerusalem College of Management and Roni took the bus.
Roni, the the fourth of six brothers and three sisters, was spared in May 2002 in the suicide bombing at the Supersol in Kiryat Yovel. He was killed just a day before his appointment as manager of the Har Nof branch. Shoppers at the supermarket said they remembered Roni, a longtime Supersol employee, as kind and considerate.
His daughter Eden, 8, said, " Now we will write only Mommy's name on the mail box. I drew a big picture with a television for Abba [Daddy], because he always watched television."
Roni Yisraeli was buried in Jerusalem. He is survived by his parents, five brothers and three sisters, his wife Siggi, and their two daughters - Eden, 8, and Shir, 2.
SUICIDE BOMBING IN AFULA
(May 19, 2003)
Rescue workers search entrance to Afula shopping mall after suicide bombing. Top: The security guard's post.
Below: Suicide bomber Heba Dawarme, 19