Suicide Bomb Kills At Least Two in Jerusalem
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JERUSALEM – A female Palestinian suicide bomber blew herself up near a crowded bus stop in Jerusalem on Wednesday, killing two people and wounding at least 17 others, Israeli police said.
The explosion occurred at a busy intersection in French Hill, a Jewish neighborhood close to the West Bank. The neighborhood has been attacked by suicide bombers in the past.
The Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, a violent group loosely linked to Yasser Arafat’s Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the attack in a phone call to The Associated Press.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon pledged to step up the fight against Palestinian militants, even as he prepares to withdraw from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank next year.
“The war against terrorism continues unabated and we do not intend to stop,” he said.
Moshe Suissa of the Jerusalem fire department said the attacker tried to approach a hitchhiking post used by Israeli soldiers when a border police officer spotted her.
“He tried to stop her and she blew up,” Suissa told Channel Two television.
Jerusalem police chief Ilan Franco said authorities were still trying to determine how the woman made it into the city. Israel has clamped a total closure on the West Bank for the Jewish holiday season.
“The operation of border patrol officers today … prevented a very big attack,” Franco said.
Israeli police said the woman carried three to five kilograms (about 10 pounds) of explosives in a bag. They declined to confirm reports that the person killed in the attack was a border policeman. They said 17 others were wounded, two critically.
The blast destroyed the bus stop, leaving shards of glass scattered in the road as the smell of burnt rubber wafted in the air.
It was the first Palestinian suicide bombing since Aug. 31, when a pair of attackers killed 16 people in the southern city of Beersheba, and the first to strike Jerusalem since Feb. 22.
Palestinian militants have staged more than 100 suicide bombings inside Israel during four years of fighting. Women have carried out at least eight of the attacks.
Most of the women were tied to the Al Aqsa group, although the Islamic groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad have also dispatched women.
Some terrorism experts have speculated that the militant groups have turned to using women because they raise less suspicion among Israeli soldiers.
Palestinian Cabinet Minister Saeb Erekat condemned the attack, saying the Palestinians oppose all violence aimed at civilians.
He called on the United States to use its influence to bring the Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.