A twin suicide bombing of an Egged bus occurred in the French Hill settlement of northern East Jerusalem 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 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.[1][2]
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 detonated a nail-studded explosive belt strapped to his body on a No. 6 passenger bus near the French Hill settlement of northern East Jerusalem. Seven civilians were killed in the attack, including four Russian immigrants and an Arab resident of Jerusalem.[3] In addition, 20 were injured in the attack, four of them seriously.[1][2][3][4]
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.[1][2]
The perpetrator
Although there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, relatives of 19-year-old Hamas activist Bassem Jamil Tarkrouri, who originated from Hebron, officially identified him as the perpetrator of the attack.[3]
Official reactions
Involved parties
Israel: Israeli officials spoke about the bombings, stating they "will continue to fight terror everywhere, at any time and in any way possible".[3]
US – Secretary of State Colin Powell spoke about the bombings, stating "we in the strongest possible terms the horrific terrorist bombing."[5]
Russia – Russian officials condemned the attack, and called on the international community to "intensify efforts to combat terrorism and activate peace efforts for the Mideast".[6]
