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| Middle East |
| Deadly Blast Rips Through Jerusalem Bus |
| 2003-06-11 |
| An explosion ripped through a bus in downtown Jerusalem on Wednesday, killing several passengers and wounding dozens, police said. Well, we all knew this was coming. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. However, the Islamic militant group Hamas has threatened to take bloody revenge for a botched attack by Israel on one of its leaders, Abdel Aziz Rantissi, on Tuesday. Police said the blast apparently was set off by a suicide bomber who targeted bus No. 14 on Jaffa Street, Jerusalem's main thoroughfare in the commercial heart of the city. The blast was heard throughout Jerusalem. Avi Zohar, a spokesman for the Magen David Adom rescue service, reported 30 casualties but did not provide a breakdown of dead and wounded. Police said several passengers were killed. Earlier Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was unapologetic about the strike against Rantissi, despite President Bush's reprimand that the attack made it harder for the Palestinian prime minister to fight terrorism. Tuesday's attack jeopardized the so-called "road map," a U.S.-backed plan for peace and Palestinian statehood by 2005. Bush has invested his presidential prestige in the initiative, formally launching it with Sharon and Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas at a summit last week in the Jordanian resort of Aqaba. "We will make no concessions to terror," Sharon told his Cabinet on Wednesday, according to a government official. "We made this clear to all the White House officials and to the Palestinians before the Aqaba summit." Hamas has carried out dozens of suicide bomb attacks in Israel, killing more than 300 people. Abbas denounced the missile strike as terrorism, appealed to the United States to intervene, and said he would keep trying to reach an understanding with Hamas and other militias. Abbas opposes a crackdown on the armed group, saying there is no substitute for dialogue and that he will not risk a civil war. Or his job Abbas has been unequivocal in his condemnation of violence against Israel, while Arafat has been more ambiguous and stands accused by Israel and the United States of involvement in terrorism. Sharon on Wednesday was quoted as saying he would not wait for Abbas to reach an agreement with Hamas. "If the Palestinian Authority does not perform its duties, we will do so instead," Sharon told the Yediot Ahronot daily. The strike against Rantissi was widely criticized in Israel, including by politicians who generally support targeted killings. Israel has carried out dozens of such attacks in the past 32 months in its campaign to prevent bombings and shootings. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #16 We need to stop restraining the Israelis. Until the myth of the intifadeh is utterly annihilated, we will never see the end of Islamic terror. As long as fools believe that they can overcome democracy, organization, skill, and technology with faith and a bomb, they will continue. Everyday that we restrain the Israelis moves us closer to the day when the next suicide bomber is armed with WMD. Set the Israelis loose, Mr. President. Crush the myth. This isn't a problem that can be managed. It must be met with decisive force. |
| Posted by: 11A5S 2003-06-11 19:55:33 |
| #15 You take out the Paleo terrorist leadership for the same reason you don't get upset when the other team's first-string quarterback is injured and has to leave the game -- by definition, the second-string quarterback isn't as good. As Zhang Fei notes, sooner or later you run out of quarterbacks. There! I've flogged that metaphor enough! |
| Posted by: Steve White 2003-06-11 18:20:53 |
| #14 Why not target the Muhlahs and imans that breed this bull. We never see the instigators out with in public with a DuPont Overcoat. The wonder is that the Israelis haven't taken out the Mosque on the Temple Mount or gone after the one in Mecca. You know the one that violates the Prophets stricture about the low grave |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-06-11 17:41:20 |
| #13 Taking out the Palestinian leadership does have a practical impact. None of these guys inherited their positions. The guys in charge are good at what they do. Some are good at propagandizing, some are good are organizing terrorist strikes and other are good at getting the finances together. All are best in class. The effect of taking out the leadership is twofold - it strikes the fear of Allah into the replacements and diminishes the pool of talented people who are willing to fill these leadership positions, knowing that they're no longer safe from attack. The idea that there's an endless pool of suicidal Islamic martyrs is a myth carefully cultivated by both liberals and conservatives leery of taking on the Islamists, as well as Muslims everywhere who want to achieve their war aims. The truth is more prosaic - Muslim countries ranging from Egypt to Malaysia have effectively suppressed terrorists who want to impose Islamic law - terrorists were killed or arrested, and nothing rose to fill the vacuum. Going back further in time, the British crushed the Mahdi in the Sudan over 100 years ago, and no one rose to take his place. The Chinese had Yakub Beg (the charismatic Muslim leader of the Uighurs of East Turkestan, now Xinjiang) sliced to pieces like sushi, and no one ever emerged to replace him. A tipping point exists, but the Israelis will never find out where it is if they keep making concessions that make Muslims think they have the Jews on the run. Why would Muslim terrorists quit if they can get all they want even if they continue their terrorist strikes? |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2003-06-11 16:32:09 |
| #12 "As soon as the Israelis tke out the heads of these organizations some one, some where will rise to take there place." This is a good thing. It makes targeting easier. |
| Posted by: Michael 2003-06-11 15:42:00 |
| #11 The basic solution for Hamas and Co is to take off the head (i.e., the leadership) and cut off their resources (take out the funding) and they will die as a viable organization. Bush's statements toward Sharon were absolutely outrageous. He is asking Israel to take hits while we negotiate with liars and / or powerless whimps. We in the US never stood for this. Why should we ask others to do this for us in order to appease some Arab govts that hate us anyway. They will never love us, but the arabs will respect us if we deal with honesty, power, and resolve. The rest is BS---documented BS. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-06-11 14:50:44 |
| #10 If the heads of these organizations keep getting killed in nasty ways as soon as they assume the office, as a matter of human nature the level of enthusiasm among the membership will decrease. (I didn't vote for Proxmire, either.) |
| Posted by: Mike 2003-06-11 12:48:12 |
| #9 As soon as the Israelis tke out the heads of these organizations some one, some where will rise to take there place. The basic problem is a culture that values martyrdom above all else. Do these people even have a view of what they would want a palistinian state to be. |
| Posted by: Someone who did NOT vote for William Proxmire 2003-06-11 12:34:06 |
| #8 The Israelis need to take out the heads of Islamic Jihad, al Aqsa and Hamas. Otherwise, this will never end. Mahmoud Abbas isn't going to do it for the Israelis - they need to do it for themselves - basically liquidate the Palestinian security apparatus and leave Abbas in charge. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2003-06-11 12:27:22 |
| #7 The biggest unknowns here are: 1. Can Hamas actually carry out (or sponsor) many more suicide bombings? 2. Will the Egyptians and Jordanians do anything to help the situation? Or, will they sit on their hands some more. |
| Posted by: mhw 2003-06-11 12:25:51 |
| #6 Better shooting today: Witnesses said an Israeli Apache helicopter fired two missiles at a car stuck in a traffic jam in a crowded Gaza City neighborhood of Shijaiyah and then fired again after a group of people gathered around the stricken vehicle. Two bodies were taken out of the car, one decapitated. The dead included members of Hamas' military wing, Tito Massoud, 35, and Soffil Abu Nahez, 29. Five other people were also killed. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-06-11 12:17:50 |
| #5 Or more missiles - like a salvo of 20+. |
| Posted by: Scooter McGruder 2003-06-11 12:13:56 |
| #4 USE BIGGER MISSILES!!! |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-06-11 12:03:49 |
| #3 Fox's "breaking news" banner (no story, just a banner) reports helicopter strikes in Gaza. Hope they had Yassin or Rantisi's hospital room in the crosshairs. |
| Posted by: Mike 2003-06-11 11:55:21 |
| #2 Finish the job on Rantissi and do Yassin. Get all the condemnations out in the shadow of the terrorist's own acts |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-06-11 11:55:08 |
| #1 Israeli police report at least 16 dead, dozens wounded. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-06-11 11:52:47 |