Mythbusters - American Face of Palestinian Terror Since Oslo

The American Face of Palestinian Terror Since Oslo

At least 53 Americans have been murdered and 83 injured by Palestinian terrorism since Yasser Arafat allegedly "renounced" violence as part of the Oslo Peace Accords on September 13, 1993. These are the American victims.

If you have a picture of a victim, further information on any of the attacks listed below (or any that may be missing), or are a family member who would like your relative's likeness removed from this site, please contact me.

Americans Murdered

	1 December 1993, north of Jerusalem. Yitzhak Weinstock, 19, whose family came from Los Angeles, CA, was murdered in a drive-by shooting. Hamas, Izz-el-Din al-Qassam Brigade, took responsibility for the attack. A young Israeli woman was also murdered in the attack.
	9 October 1994, Bnei Atarot junction and Bir Nabbalah. Nachshon Wachsman, 19, a member of the elite Orev Golani unit of the IDF, was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists disguised as Orthodox jews. Hamas demanded that Israel release their leader, blind Sheik Achmed Yassin, and 200 other incarcerated Palestinian terrorists. PM Rabin and President Clinton (Nachson's mother is from NY) were involved in efforts to gain Nachson's release. On 14 October, Nachson and Capt. Nir Poraz were killed in a failed rescue attempt.
	9 April 1995, Netzarim. A suicide bomber crashed an explosive-rigged van into an Israeli bus, murdering eight, including U.S. citizen Alisa Flatow, 20, of West Orange, NJ. More than 30 others were injured. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Shaqaqi Faction, claimed responsibility for the attack.
	21 August 1995, Jerusalem. A bus bombing in Jerusalem by Hamas murdered four, including American Joan Davenny of New Haven, CT, and wounded more than 100.
	9 September 1995, Ma'ale Michmash. A terrorist invaded the Frey home, stabbing Mrs. Mara Frey (three months pregnant), an American-Israeli originally from Chicago. Her unborn child and husband (not American) were murdered in the attack. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a member of Arafat's PLO, claimed responsibility for the attack.
	25 February 1996, Jerusalem. A Hamas suicide bomber blew up Bus #18 in Jerusalem, murdering 26. At least 80 were injured, among them two U.S. citizens. Americans Sara Duker (23)of NJ, Matthew Eisenfeld (25) of CT, and Ira Weinstein (53)of NY were murdered..
	13 May 1996, Beit-El. A Hamas terrorist opened fire on a hitchhiking stand near Beit El, wounding three Israeli students and killing David Boim, 17, an American-Israeli from Chicago. His family sued alleged Hamas fronts in the U.S., including the Holy Land Foundation and Quranic Literacy Institute, in an effort to bankrupt them. One of David's murderers, Khalif Taqfiq al-Sharif, was arrested and 'tried' by the PA, to prevent his extradition to Israel under the Oslo Accords, then released. Al-Sharif later murdered 5 Israelis and injured 181 in a September 1997 Jerusalem suicide bombing.
	9 June 1996, outside Zekharya. Yaron Ungar, an American-Israeli, and his Israeli wife were killed in a drive-by shooting returning from a wedding. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack. The Unger family in the U.S. sued the Palestinian Authority/PLO on behalf of the Unger's two young children, for providing Hamas with an operational base within it's territories. On 12 July 2004 a Rhode Island federal court awarded the Unger estate $116 million.
	30 July 1997, Jerusalem. Two bombs detonated in Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda market, murdering 16 people, including Mrs. Leah Stern, 50, of Passaic, NJ. The attacks wounded 178 others, among them two U.S. citizens. The Hamas, Izz-el-Din al-Qassam Brigade, claimed responsibility for the attack.
	4 September 1997, Jerusalem. Three coordinated suicide bombings at the Ben-Yehuda Pedestrian Mall murdered 5 and wounded 181. One American, Yael Botwin, 14, of Los Angeles and Jerusalem, was murdered, and ten U.S. citizens were injured. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack. One of the suicide bombers had perviously murdered 17-year-old David Boim, also an American citizen, in Beit-el. The PA released David's murderer after a 'show-trial', who was then free to perpetrate this equally heinous attack.
	19 April 1998, Maon. Dov Driben, a 28-year-old American-Israeli farmer, father of four, was killed by terrorists on his legally purchased farm near Maon. Two other Israelis were wounded in the attack. One of his assailants, Issa Debabseh, a member of Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services), was killed on 7 November 2001 by the IDF, whilst evading arrest. On 6 November 2003, Ibrahim Debabse was arrested for involvement in Driben's murder.
	In a speech at the opening of his Presidential Library, given 18 November 2004, President Clinton claimed that after Oslo there was "one year in which no one died from terrorist attacks." While no Americans were murdered in Israel in 1999, over 60 Israelis were injured and at least 3 were murdered in at least 9 newsworthy attacks over the course of that year. You may click HERE for a partial list of these attacks from Wickipedia, or conduct a search for more details at the International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism, Mideast Attack Database.
	8 October 2000, Nablus. The bullet-ridden body of Rabbi Hillel Lieberman, 36 (oleh from Brooklyn), was found at the entrance to the West Bank town of Nablus. Lieberman (believed murdered the previous day) had gone to Nablus to rescue Torah scrolls, after hearing that a mob of Palestinians had desecrated and destroyed Joseph's Tomb, a Jewish religious site which is specifically protected under the Oslo Accords (The Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip [Annex I], Article V 2:b and Appendix 4, 28 Sept 1995). Palestinians later rebuilt the tomb as a mosque before it was retaken by the IDF. While now in Israeli control, access to it is extremely limited. Hassan Rouajbe, a member of Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services), was arrested 5 December 2002, for involvement in the murder. Lieberman was the father of seven and cousin to U.S. Senator Joseph Lieberman (CT).
	30 October 2000, Jerusalem. Eish Kodesh Gilmor, 25, of Moshav Mevo Modi'in (parents from Ohio and New Jersey) was murdered by gunmen while on duty as a security guard at the National Insurance Institute in Jerusalem. Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade faction, claimed responsibility for the attack. One other guard was injured. Gilmor's family filed a suit in the U.S. District Court in Washington against the Palestinian Authority, the PLO, Chairman Yasser Arafat and members of Force 17, for responsibility in the attack.
	31 December 2000, Ofra. Rabbi Binyamin Kahane, 34, and his wife, Talia,31, both formerly of Brooklyn, NY, were killed in a drive-by shooting. Five daughters, aged 2 months to 10 years, were injured in the ensuing car crash. Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade faction, claimed responsibility for the attack, which 'celebrated' the anniversary of the Fatah movement's creation. Kahane's father, Meir, was assassinated by a Palestinian gunman in New York in November 1990.
	9 May 2001, Tekoa. Yaakov (Koby) Mandell, 13, of Silver Spring, MD, an American-Israeli, was found brutally murdered along with a friend, Yossi Ish Ran, in a cave near his home in Tekoa. Two organizations, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hizballah-Palestine, claimed responsibility for the attack. Support the Koby Mandell Foundation, which provides bereavement and healing services to families of terrorism victims.
	29 May 2001, Neve Daniel. Arafat's Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) claimed responsibility for a drive-by shooting of six that murdered two, including American Sara Blaustein, 53, from NY. Her husband and a son from a previous marriage, Americans, were also injured in the attack.
	15 January 2002, Bethlehem. Avraham Boaz, 71, of New York, a dual Israeli-American citizen, was kidnapped by members of Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) at a Palestinian Authority security checkpoint in Beit Jala, outside Bethlehem. PA policemen witnessed the abduction but did not interfere. Boaz's bullet-riddled body was found in a suburb of Bethlehem, where he worked with Palestinians as an architect, building homes.
	18 January 2002, Hadera. Aharon Ben Yisrael-Ellis, 32, was murdered when a terrorist burst into a bat mitzvah reception at David's Palace, firing on a crowd of 180 and murdering 6 (over 30 injured). He was the first Israeli-born child of the Black Hebrew community (his parents are from Chicago). He died heroically, shielding the female singer of the band at the reception. Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyr's Brigade faction, claimed responsibility for the attack.
	16 February 2002, Karnei Shomron. A bombing at a pizzeria in the Yuvalim Mall murdered three teenagers and injured six others. Keren Shatsky, 14 (Brooklyn, NY and Maine) and Rachel Thaler, 16 (Baltimore, MD, were the two Americans murdered. Rachel's brother, Lior, was barely survived the blast. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a member of Arafat's PLO, claimed responsibility for the attack.
	25 February 2002, Jerusalem. Moranne Amit, 25, was stabbed to death in Abu Tor Peace Forest in Jerusalem by four Palestinian teenagers, aged 14-16. Moranne was a second year law student at Haifa U. who also managed Ynet.com's singles forum. All four youths were apprehended. They had previous tried to blow up apartment buildings with gas canisters, attacked a Spanish tourist with a club and stabbed Henry Weill, who survived. The youths bought larger knives after that attack, which they used to murder Moranne. Moranne's father is an oleh from NY, and she was a dual citizen.
	27 March 2002, Passover Massacre in Netanya. A terrorist from Hamas, Izz-el-Din al-Qassam Brigade, murdered 30 and injured 132 in a suicide bombing attack during a Passover seder at the Park Hotel. The bomber had been on a most-wanted list of terrorists previously submitted to the Palestinian Authority, which did not attempt to apprehend him. Chanah Rogen, 90, survived the blast but died in hospital eight days later. She had previously survived the Holocaust and emigrated to the US, where she lived for over two decades before making aliyah in 1972.
	18 June 2002, Jerusalem. Dr. Moshe Gottlieb, 70, an Israeli-American, was killed in the #32A bus bombing in Jerusalem. A Hamas terrorist boarded the bus with a suicide bomb in a bag packed with poison-coated ball bearings. Twenty people were killed, including two children, and 74 were injured (among them many children on their way to school). Dr. Gottleib, a Holocaust survivor, was traveling to Bnei Brak, where he donated his chiropractic skills weekly to children suffering from Down's Syndrome.
	19 June 2002, Jerusalem. Gila Sara Kessler, 19, whose father is from New York, was murdered when a suicide bomber detonated at a bus stop in French Hill, a Jerusalem neighborhood. The attack, claimed by Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade faction, killed 7 and wounded 50. Gila was an employee of the Jewish Agency and was returning to her mother's home in Eli.
	31 July 2002, Hebrew University, Jerusalem. Nine people were killed and 85 injured when a bomb exploded in the Frank Sinatra cafeteria at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Five were U.S. citizens: Janis Ruth Coulter, 36, of MA; Marla Bennet, 24, of San Diego, CA; David Gritz (also a French citizen), 24, of MA; Benjamin Blutstein, 25, of Susquehanna Township, PA; and Dina Carter, 37, of NC. Two Israelis were also murdered and five Americans were injured. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.
	5 March 2003, Haifa.. Abigail Leitel, 14 (born in NH), was murdered when a Hamas terrorist boarded the #37 bus and detonated as school let out. In all, 17 were killed (including 9 teenagers) and 53 were wounded. Abigail came to Israel as an infant, when her father came to study at Technion Institute. He now administers the Baptist Church of Israel. Abigail had been part of the Children Teaching Children program at the Jewish-Arab Center for Peace in Givat Haviva. The suicide bomber was identified as Mahmoud Amadan Salim Kawasme, 20, member of Hamas and a computer student from the Hebron Polytechnic Institute. A letter found on his body praised the 9/11 Al Qaeda attacks in the U.S. as "One of the miracles of the Koran." The bomber's mother expressed pride in her son's murderous action.
	7 March 2003, Kiryat Arba. Two Hamas terrorists disguised as Orthodox Jews infiltrated Kiryat Arba during the Sabbath and murdered American couple Rabbi Eli Horowitz, 52 (Chicago) and his wife Dina, 50 (Florida), in a home invasion as they were eating dinner. The shootout resulted in injuries to four civilians as well as four soldiers.
	11 June 2003, Jerusalem. A Hamas terrorist from Hebron, disgused as an Orthodox Jew, boarded the #14A bus and detonated, murdering 17 and injuring over 50. Alan (Avraham Haim) Beer, 47 (oleh from Cleveland), perished in the attack. A US Senator's daughter was among the injured. Abdullah Kawasme, the Hamas 'handler' responsible this and other attacks (over 50 dead), was killed outside a mosque in Hebron two weeks later, during an attempt by IDF forces to arrest him.
	20 June 2003, near Ramallah. Tzvi Goldstein, 47 (oleh from New York), was murdered when Hamas terrorists opened fire on his vehicle. Tzvi was travelling to a Jerusalem reception to celebrate his son's wedding and his own 27th anniversary. Tzvi's parents and wife, all also Americans, were injured in the attack.
	19 August 2003, Jerusalem. A Hamas terrorist, disguised as an Orthodox Jew, boarded the #2 bus and detonated, murdering 23 (7 were children) and injuring 130 (40 were children). Five Americans were murdered: Goldie Taubenfeld, 43 (New York), and her 3-year-old son, Shmuel (mother of 13 children, a daughter was also injured); Tehilla Nathanson, 3 (New York: her parents and two sisters were also injured); Rabbi Shalom Mordechai Reinitz, 49 (born in NY), and his 9-year-old son Issachar Dov. Mordechai's 11-year-old son was injured in the attack. He is survived by his wife and 11 children. The attack occurred as US Congressmen were touring Israel.
	9 September 2003, Jerusalem. Dr. David Applebaum, 51 (Michigan), and his daughter Nava, 20, were murdered in a suicide bombing at the Cafe Hillel which killed 7 and injured over 50. Dr. Applebaum was the director of the Shaare Zedek Medical Center's Department of Emergency Medicine and had received an award from the Knesset for his on-scene assistance in a previous suicide bombing. His daughter, Nava, had recently completed her National Service with Zichron Menahem, a voluntary organization devoted to aiding child cancer patients, and was to be married the next day.
	15 October 2003, U.S. Diplomatic Convoy, Gaza Strip. Former U.S. Navy SEAL John Branchizio (37), former Marine Mark Parson (31), and John Martin Linde (30) were killed in a roadside bombing while protecting American diplomats entering Gaza to interview Fulbright scholarship candidates. Another American guard, unnamed, was reportedly injured. Israeli lawyer Nitsana Darshan-Leitner has accused Arafat's Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) of the bombing, alleging that Arafat appointed the perpetrator of the attack (Rashid Abu Shabak) to investigate his own crime. Abu Shabak is allegedly responsible for other roadside bombings, including a school bus bombing on 20 November 2000, in which Americans were killed or injured. Musa Arafat, the head of PA military intelligence and a cousin of Yasser Arafat, told Reuters on 22 September 2004, "The Palestinian security forces know who was behind the killing of three Americans in Gaza nearly a year ago, but cannot act against the factions while the fighting with Israel continues."
	24 September 2004, Neve Dekalim. Tiferet Tratner, 24 (dual citizen), was killed the day before Yom Kippur when masked Palestinian terrorists successfully launched a direct mortar hit on her home. Another woman was injured. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.

Americans Injured

Sometime in 1994, Atzmona, Gaza. Mrs. Sheila Deutsch of Brooklyn, NY, is reported injured in a shooting attack. This attack has not been vetted. Anyone with information regarding the details of this attack, please contact me.

9 October 1994, Jerusalem. Two Hamas terrorists opened fire on cafe-goers in the Nahalat Shiva'a business district of Jerusalem, murdering two Israelis. U.S. citizens Scott Doberstein and Eric Goldberg were injured.

9 April 1995, Kfar Darom. In the second attack of the day, a suicide bomber detonated a car bomb in the midst of a convoy of cars in Kfar Darom, injuring 12. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Shaqaqi Faction, claimed responsibility for the attacks. U.S. citizens Chava Levine and Seth Klein were injured. An American was killed in the other attack.

15 June 1995, Jerusalem. U.S. citizen Howard Tavens (of Ohio) was injured in a stabbing attack which occurred after Arafat gave a televised speech earlier in the day to the Palestine Women's Union, in which he praised two women suicide bombers and declared "We are all seekers of martyrdom in the path of truth and rights toward Jerusalem... the oath is firm to continue this difficult Jihad, this long Jihad, in the path of martyrs, the path of sacrifices".

21 August 1995, Jerusalem. A Hamas terrorist detonated on the #26 bus, as it passed the #9 bus, murdering four, including an American and the Jerusalem Police Chief, and wounding more than 100. Americans Chanoch Bleier, Judith Shulewitz, and Bernard Batta were injured in the attack.

9 September 1995, Ma'ale Michmash. Terrorists from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a member of Arafat's PLO, attacked Mrs. Mara Frey of Chicago, in a home invasion. The attack resulted in the death of her unborn child and the murder of her husband.

25 February 1996, Jerusalem. A suicide bomber blew up a commuter bus, murdering 26, including three U.S. citizens, and injuring 80 others, among them another two U.S. citizens. Hamas claimed responsibility for the bombing. Americans Beatrice Kramer and Steven Lapides were injured in the attack.

4 March 1996, Tel Aviv. A suicide bomber detonated an explosive device outside the Dizengoff Center, Tel Aviv's largest shopping mall, murdering 20 people and injuring 75 others, including two U.S. citizens. Both Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack. American Julie Negrin of Seattle, WA, was injured in the attack.

13 May 1996, Beit-El. Hamas terrorists opened fire on a hitchhiking stand near Beit El, murdering an American teenager and wounding three Israelis as well as American Moshe Greenbaum, 17. Khalif Taqfiq al-Sharif was arrested and 'tried' by the PA for involvement in the attack, in order to prevent his extradition to Israel under the Oslo Accords, then released. Al-Sharif later murdered 5 Israelis and injured 181 in a September 1997 Jerusalem suicide bombing. One American was murdered and ten injured in that attack.

30 July 1997, Jerusalem. Two suicide bombers detonated themselves in Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda market, murdering 16 including a U.S. citizen and wounding 178 others, among them two Americans. Hamas, Izz-el-Din al-Qassam Brigade, claimed responsibility for the attack. American Dov Dalin was injured in the attack. Another unnamed American was also injured.

4 September 1997, Jerusalem. Three coordinated suicide bombings at the Ben-Yehuda Pedestrian Mall murdered 5, including an American teenager, and wounded 181 others, including ten U.S. citizens. They are Diana Campuzano of NY, Abraham Mendelson of CA, Greg Salzman of NJ, Stuart Hersh, Michael Alzer, Abraham Elias, David Keinan, Daniel Miller of FL, Noam Rozenman, and Jenny (Yocheved) Rubin of CA.

One of the suicide bombers, Khalif Taqfiq al-Sharif, had perviously murdered an American teenager and injured another in an attack in May 1996 in Beit-el. The PA released Al-Sharif after a 'show-trial', which prevented his extradition to Israel under Oslo, and freed him to perpetrate this equally heinous attack.

In a speech at the opening of his Presidential Library, given 18 November 2004, President Clinton claimed that after Oslo there was "one year in which no one died from terrorist attacks." While no Americans were murdered in Israel in 1999, over 60 Israelis were injured and at least 3 were murdered in at least 9 newsworthy attacks over the course of that year. While no Americans were apparently injured in 1998, at least 87 Israelis were injured in at least 10 newsworthy attacks, including the bombing of the Tel Aviv Great Synagogue and a grenade attack at a central bus station. You may click HERE for a partial list of these attacks from Wickipedia, or conduct a search for more details at the International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism, Mideast Attack Database.

29 September 2000, near Jerusalem. Avi and Naomi Herman, of NJ, were dragged from their car and brutally assaulted by Palestinians near Jerusalem. There was no claim of responsibility for the attack, which occurred the day after Ariel Sharon ascended the Temple Mount, Judaism's holiest site.

29 September 2000, Jerusalem. Tuvia Grossman of Chicago, Todd Pollack of VA, and Andrew Feibusch of NY, were pulled from their taxi and beaten and stabbed by Palestinians. There was no claim of responsibility for the attack, which occurred the day after Ariel Sharon ascended the Temple Mount, Judaism's holiest site.

The AP and NY Times labeled this photo as "an Israeli policeman and a Palestinian on the Temple Mount", asserting that the injured teenager was a Palestinian being attacked by the Israeli policeman. The photo was, in actuality, a picture of an Israeli policeman saving American teenager Tuvia Grossman from a Palestinian mob. The attack did not occur, as the picture asserts, on the Temple Mount, but elsewhere in Jerusalem. The gas station in the background of the picture should have been the editor's first clue to that fact. In April 2002, a District Court in Paris ordered the French daily newspaper "Liberation" and the Associated Press to pay 4,500 Euros each to Grossman for damages for misrepresenting him.

4 October 2000, Gilo. The Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot reported that an [as of yet unnamed] American tourist visiting a Jerusalem monastery was shot in the head when Palestinian Arab terrorists opened fire in the direction of the monastery, in the Gilo neighborhood of southern Jerusalem.

5 October 2000, south of Jerusalem. Rabbi Chaim Brovender, 60 (of Brooklyn and Jerusalem), President of ATID and Rosh Yeshivat HaMivtar, was savagely beaten by a Palestinian mob and Palestinian Authority police officers [read: Arafat's Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) was responsible for the attack]. He was hospitalized off and on for weeks at a time over the course of the next two months. The Rabbi was also robbed of a few thousand shekels in cash during the attack, which he was to distribute before Yom Kippur for the tzedekah fund he has long administered, Keren Chaim ve-Chesed. To donate to this fund, please click here.

31 December 2000, Ofra. Dual-citizen children Yehudit, Bitya, Tzivya, Rivka, and Shlomtsion Kahane (aged 2 months to 10 years old) were injured when Palestinians fired on their vehicle, murdering their parents in the attack. Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade faction, claimed responsibility for the attack, which 'celebrated' the anniversary of the Fatah movement's creation. Their grandfather, Rabbi Meir Kahane, was assassinated by a Palestinian gunman in New York in November 1990.

28 March 2001, Neve Yamin. A suicide bomber from Qalqilya detoned himself at the "Peace Rendezvouz" Kiosk, a bus stop frequently used by students waiting for their bus to school. Two children were murdered and four others were injured, aged 13-15, including Netanel Herskovitz, 15, formerly of Hempstead, NY. The Hamas, Izz-el-Din al-Qassam Brigade, claimed responsibility for the attack.

29 May 2001, Neve Daniel. Arafat's Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) claimed responsibility for a drive-by shooting of six that injured Norman Blaustein and Samuel Berg of Lawrence, NY. Norman's wife (and Samuel's mother, from a previous marriage) was murdered in the attack.

9 August 2001, Jerusalem. A suicide bombing at Sbarro's Pizzeria, situated in one of the busiest areas of downtown Jerusalem, murdered 15 people and wounded more than 130, mostly young families and tourists. Six children were among the dead. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack. Two Americans were murdered and four injured: David Danzig (21, from of PA), Matthew Gordon (25, from New York), Joanne (Chana) Nachenberg (31), and her 2-year-old daughter Sara Shifra.

19 August 2001, Jerusalem. American Andrew Raibi, 20, and a 6-year-old Israeli child were wounded by terrorist gunfire while riding on the #45 bus at Pisgat Ze'ev/Hizme Junction in northern Jerusalem. This, while the Saudi newspaper Okaz (as reported by the AP, 20 August 2001) quoted Syrian Vice-President Mohammed Zuhair Masharqah in an interview that day as saying "Israel has surpassed Nazi Germany in its evils." Arafat's Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) claimed responsibility for the attack.

27 August 2001, near Roglit. Three member's of Arafat's Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) opened fire on a vehicle, injuring Ben Dansker (30, Massachusetts) and another passenger.

4 November 2001, Jerusalem. A Palestinian police man opened fire with his Oslo-issue M-16 (U.S.-provided) on the #25 bus in the French Hill neighbourhood, murdering 2 including an American teenager, and injuring 45, including American Shlomo Kaye, 15. The terrorist, in addition for working in Arafat's security services, also belonged to Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which claimed responsibility for the attack.

1 December 2001, Jerusalem. Two suicide bombers detonated along the pedestrian mall on Ben-Yehuda Street, murdering 11 people (aged 14-20) and injuring over 180. The mall was crowded with people socializing at the end of the Sabbath. A third car bomb was detonated twenty minutes later, targeting rescue workers, with no injuries reported in that blast. The Americans injured were Ziv Brill (17, NY), Temima Spetner (19, MI), Jason Kirshenbaum (NY), Israel Hirschfield (18), and Joseph Leifer (29, NY). Hamas claimed responsibility for the attacks, as well as two attacks hours later in Haifa (which murdered 15 and injured 60) and a drive-by shooting of an Israeli scientist near Elei Sinai.

18 December 2001, near Ofra. Palestinian terrorists opened fire on a vehicle travelling the Jerusalem-Shiloh highway, shooting David Rubin (44, oleh from NY) and his 3-year-old son Asher "Ruby" Rubin. Both surivived their injuries. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a member of Arafat's PLO, claimed responsibility for the attack.

According to the Israeli daily Ma'ariv, Arafat spoke at a rally in Ramallah earlier that day in Arabic: "...we are willing to give 70 of our martyrs for every one of their martyrs in this campaign [to conquer Jerusalem]..." The speech was in direct contrast to an English-language speech to Western media given two days earlier, where Arafat called for an end to suicide bombings and armed attacks against Israelis. The crowd responded to Arafat's Ramallah speech with chants that millions of martyrs were on their way to Jerusalem.

22 January 2002, Jerusalem. A Palestinian terrorist opened fire at the intersection of King George Ave. and Jaffat St. with an Oslo-issue M-16 (U.S.-provided), murdering two Israeli women and injuring 14 others, including American Shayna Gould (19, IL). According to the police, the terrorist managed to fire 58 bullets before he was gunned down. Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade faction, claimed responsibility for the attack.

27 January 2002, Jerusalem. A Palestinian woman triggered a massive explosion in downtown Jerusalem, killing one elderly Israeli and injuring more than 150, including American Mark Sokolow, his wife, and 16-year-old and 12-year-old daughters. Arafat's Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) claimed responsibility for the attack. Sokolow had earlier survived the September 11 attack on the World Trade Center, escaping from his law office on the 38th floor of the South Tower before it collapsed.

16 February 2002, Karnei Shomron. A bombing at a pizzeria in a shopping mall murdered three American teenagers and injured six others, including Lior Thaler (14, MD), Hillel Trattner (IL), Ronit Yucht Trattner (IL), and Chani Friedman (NY). The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a member of Arafat's PLO, claimed responsibility for the attack.

19 February 2002, Neve Dekalim. A Palestinian terrorist opened fire on vehicles travelling through the Kissufim junction injuring American-Israeli Moshe Saperstein (NY). Despite an injury to his good hand (Moshe Saperstein lost an arm in the Yom Kippur War), he heroically attempted to run down a terrorist who had just murdered a young mother driving in the car in front of him. Two soldiers were killed intercepting the terrorist. Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade faction, claimed responsibility for the attack.

7 March 2002, Ariel. A suicide bomber detonated himself within the lobby of the Eshel Hashomron Hotel, injuring 10, including a Christian tourist from Arkansas, who lost her right eye in an attack. She was visiting Israel through the Arkansas Institute of Holy Land Studies, who's director Dr. Ron Mosley quoted the woman (to the Jerusalem Post) as saying "Now I'm a daughter of Zion. I can relate to them because I have something lasting." Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade faction, claimed responsibility for the attack.

31 July 2002, Jerusalem. Nine people were killed when a bomb, hidden in an abandoned handbag, exploded in the main cafeteria at the Hebrew University's Mount Scopus campus, murdering 9, including five Americans, and injuring at least 86. Americans injured were Spencer Dew (26, KY), Ze'ev Spencer, Harris Gershon, and Jamie Harris. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.

30 April 2003, Tel Aviv. Terrorists belonging to Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyr's Brigade faction, detonated themselves at Mikes Place in Tel Aviv, murdering 3 and injuring 60. The bombers, Asif Hanif and Omar Khan Sharif, were seen five days prior at a memorial service conducted by the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), a group allegedly interested in human rights for Palestinians, on behalf of ISM member Rachel Corrie (U.S.), who was killed by falling debris while 'working' illegally in a closed military zone. Jack Baxter, 50, of New York City, was injured in the attack.

11 June 2003, Jerusalem. A Hamas suicide bomber disguised as an Orthodox Jew detonated himself on bus #14, murdering 17 (including 1 American) and injuring over 50, including American Sarri Singer, 29, daughter of New Jersey State Senator Robert Singer. Abdullah Kawasme, the Hamas 'handler' responsible this and other attacks (over 50 dead), was killed outside a mosque in Hebron two weeks later, during an attempt by IDF forces to arrest him.

20 June 2003, near Ramallah. A Hamas terrorist opened fire on an Israeli vehicle travelling the highway outside of Ramallah, murdering one American and injuring three others. Injured were Eugene and Lorraine Goldstein (NY), and Michal Goldstein, who grew up in New York. Michal's husband, Tzvi (son of Eugene and Lorraine), was murdered in the attack. They were travelling to a Jerusalem reception in celebration of their son's wedding and Michal and her husband's 27th anniversary.

19 August 2003, Jerusalem. A Hamas terrorist disguised as an orthodox Jew detonated on bus #2, murdering 7 including 5 Americans, of which three were children. Batsheva Taubenfeld, 16, was injured. Her mother and infant brother were murdered in the attack. Mendel Reinitz, 11, was also injured. Mendel's father and brother were killed. Matanya and Chana Nathanson, both 27, and daughters Yehudit (6) and Shoshana (6 months) were all wounded in the blast. Their 3-year-old daughter was killed.

15 October 2003, U.S. Diplomatic Convoy, Gaza Strip. One unnamed American diplomat was injured when a convoy of American diplomats entering Gaza to interview Fulbright scholarship candidates was attacked with roadside bombs. Three American security personnel were murdered in the attack.

Israeli lawyer Nitsana Darshan-Leitner has accused Arafat's Fatah Tanzim (Arafat's security services) of the bombing, alleging that Arafat appointed the perpetrator of the attack (Rashid Abu Shabak) to investigate his own crime. Abu Shabak is allegedly responsible for other roadside bombings, including a school bus bombing on 20 November 2000, in which Americans were killed or injured. Musa Arafat, the head of PA military intelligence and a cousin of Yasser Arafat, told Reuters on 22 September 2004, "The Palestinian security forces know who was behind the killing of three Americans in Gaza nearly a year ago, but cannot act against the factions while the fighting with Israel continues."

19 May 2004, Rafah, The Israel Foreign Press Association, and various international newspapers, report that Palestinian militants attempted to kidnap American journalist James Bennet of the NY Times. Bystanders came to Mr. Bennet's aid, prevening the kidnapping.

31 July 2004, Nablus. Palestinian terrorists affiliated with Arafat's Fatah, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade faction, kidnapped three foreign church volunteers in Nablus -- an American, Briton and Irishman whose names went unreleased. They were freed hours later unharmed.

Click on picture for larger image
Photo "courtesy" Al Jazeera, Terrorist Network News

Attacks on US Soil
(Including US Embassies and Consulates)

2-13 January 1997, Major cities worldwide, United States. A series of letter bombs with Alexandria, Egypt, postmarks were discovered at Al-Hayat newspaper bureaus in Washington D.C., New York, London, and Riyadh. Three similar devices, also postmarked in Egypt, were found at a prison facility in Leavenworth, Kansas, addressed to a parole officer. Bomb disposal experts defused most of the devices, but one detonated at the Al-Hayat newspaper office in London, injuring two security guards and causing minor damage. The letters were sent by supporters of Palestinian Mohammed Salameh, who was convicted of involvement in the first World Trade Center bombing in February 1993. He is serving a life sentence at the Leavenworth facility.

23 February 1997, New York City. Palestinian 'professor' from the Gaza strip, Ali Hassan Abu Kamal (69), opened fire on tourists at an observation deck atop the Empire State Building in New York, killing a Danish national and wounding seven visitors from the United States, Argentina, Switzerland and France, before turning the gun on himself. A handwritten note carried by the gunman claimed this was a punishment attack against the "enemies of Palestine". He had recently lost his entire life savings in a failed business venture and his family reported him as distraught.

21 June 1998, Beirut, Lebanon. Four RPG-7 rockets were fired at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, but fell short. No casualties and little damage were reported. Due to the amateurish nature of the attack, Hizballah was ruled out as the perpetrator and it is widely believed Palestinians were responsible.

19 December 1998, Damascus, Syria. An angry mob of Syrians and Palestinians overran the U.S. Embassy compound, causing widespread destruction of property including the Chief of Mission's residence. U.S. citizens were evacuated and no injuries were reported.

Major attacks on Americans by Palestinians prior to Oslo

5 June 1968, Los Angeles. Robert Kennedy, campaigning for the Democratic Party's nomination for President, was assassinated by Palestinian Sirhan Bishara Sirhan. Paul Schrade (speechwriter), Erwin Stroll (7 years-old), William Weisel (ABC director), Ira Goldstein (reporter), and Elizabeth Evans (an artist) were also shot.

From Hyperhistory.net: During the trial, Sirahn confessed, "I killed Robert Kennedy willfully, premeditatedly, and with twenty years of malice aforethought." [Twenty years, of course, date back to Israel's declaration of nationhood in 1948.] In a notebook found in Sirhan's apartment, investigators found a passage written on 18 May 1968 at 9:45 AM: "Robert F. Kennedy must be assassinated before 5 June 68."- the first anniversary of the beginning of the Six-Day War. Four years later, Arafat's terrorists kidnapped and murdered American diplomats in the Sudan (see below). One of the terrorist's primary demands was Sirhan's release. If Sirhan had acted independently of the PLO, why were they willing to kill prominent Americans to try to gain his freedom?

2 March 1973, Khartoum, Sudan. Excerpted from WorldNetDaily.com:

James J. Welsh, a former National Security Agency operative receiving intercepts from a Cyprus listening post at the time of this attack, was the recipient of communication intercepts between Arafat and his Al-Fatah guerrilla leaders, in which Welsh says Yasser Arafat ordered the cold-blooded, machine-gun murders of U.S. Ambassador Cleo Noel, Charges d'affaires George Curtis Moore, and Belgian diplomat Guy Eid.

Eight members of Arafat's Fatah, Black September faction, raided a reception at the Saudi Arabian embassy in Khartoum Feb. 27, 1973, rounded up a group of diplomats and held them hostage for days. The kidnappers – operating on the direct orders of Arafat, says Welsh – demanded the release of Sirhan Bishara Sirhan, the convicted assassin of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, as well as other Arabs in jails throughout Europe and Israel.

President Nixon refused to negotiate. Arafat's deputy, Abu Iyad, transmitted a message to the terrorists containing the codeword "Nahr al-Bard" – Cold River. That, says Welsh, was the signal to kill the Western diplomats.

The information on this page was found mainly at the Jewish Virtual Library's website,
American Victims of Mideast Terrorist Attacks.

Compiled by Caroline Taillandier, a research assistant at the GLORIA center and student at Tel Aviv University, Dr. Mitchell Bard, and Alden Oreck, Avi Hein, and Elihai Braun, research assistants at the American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise, and Paul Teller, Deputy Director, House Republican Study Committee. Updated since 24 September 2004 by the editor of this website.

Sources:

"Patterns of Global Terrorism" reports 1995-2000, U.S. State Department

International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism, Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya

Peacewatch, The Washington Institute for New East Policy

AIPAC

Ha'aretz, International Herald Tribune

American Citizens Killed or Injured by Palestinian Terrorists: Israel's War on Terrorism is America's War on Terrorism, Republican Study Committee

Casualties of War, Jerusalem Post

Faces of the Victims Database, One Family Fund

In Memory of the Victims of Palestinian Violence and Terrorism in Israel, Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Zoinist Organization of America

The American Face of Palestinian Terror Since Oslo

Americans Murdered

Americans Injured

Attacks on US Soil (Including US Embassies and Consulates)

Major attacks on Americans by Palestinians prior to Oslo

Attacks on US Soil
(Including US Embassies and Consulates)