The 2002 Rishon LeZion bombing was a suicide bombing which occurred on 7 May 2002 at a crowded game club located in the new industrial area of Rishon Lezion. 16 people were killed in the attack and 55 were injured. The Islamic militant group

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 ...

claimed responsibility for the attack.

The attack

On Tuesday, 7 May 2002 at 11:03 pm, a

Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

suicide bomber detonated a hidden explosive device within a crowded game club full of people located in the new industrial area of Rishon Lezion, only 10 km south of

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...

, killing 15 civilians and injuring 55 people, 10 critically. After the attack the Israeli police stated that the suicide bomber was carrying a briefcase full of explosives and in addition was also wearing an

explosive belt An explosive belt (also called suicide belt or a suicide vest) is an improvised explosive device, a belt or a vest packed with explosives and armed with a detonator, worn by suicide bombers. Explosive belts are usually packed with ball bearings, ...

. The police estimated that the total weight of explosives were between 7 and 8 kilograms, and stated that the briefcase contained also metal fragments and bolts in order to maximize the number of casualties in the attack.

The perpetrators

The Islamic militant group Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.

Aftermath

The attack was condemned by United Nations Secretary General

Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (; 8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founde ...

. After the attack, Irina Polishchuk, a Ukrainian married to Palestinian-Arab Ibrahim Sarahne, was caught and convicted of participating in the 2002 Rishon LeZion bombing for her part in delivering the bomber to the site of the attack.

Release of attack collaborator

On 18 October 2011, Polishchuk, who had originally been sentenced to 20 years imprisonment, was released to the West Bank as part of the

Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange The Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange (; ), also known as "Wafa al-Ahrar" (''"Faithful to the free"''), followed a 2011 agreement between Israel and Hamas to release Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for 1,027 prisoners — almost all Pales ...

between Israel and Hamas.

References

External links

Suicide bomber kills 15 in Israel
– published on 8 May 2002 in

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

Lin: The aftermath of the Rishon Letzion attack
– published on 8 May 2002 on

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

Israeli Embassy Statement on 7 May Rishon LeZion Bombing
– published on 8 May 2002 on jewishfederations.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Rishon LeZion bombing Mass murder in 2002 Suicide bombings in 2002 Hamas suicide bombings Terrorist incidents in Israel in 2002 May 2002 events in Asia Islamic terrorist incidents in 2002 Islamic terrorism in Israel