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| Israel-Palestine |
| Family of would-be teenage bomber expresses outrage |
| 2004-03-26 |
I’m speechless The family of Husam Abdu, 16, of Nablus, who was caught on Wednesday at an IDF checkpoint with an explosive vest strapped to his body, has reacted with fury to reports that he had been dispatched to carry out a suicide attack. His mother, however, said she would not have opposed the decision to send her son on the suicide mission had he been over 18. Many Palestinians expressed shock at the internationally televised footage showing the boy removing the explosive vest at the Huwara checkpoint south of Nablus. "If I find out who sent him on this mission, I will not hesitate to fire two bullets at his head," said Abdu’s uncle, Abu Muhammad. "I don’t even mind spending the rest of my life in prison. Those who did this are criminals." He said he strongly condemns the recruiting of Abdu as a suicide bomber, noting that no one from the family had ever been involved in terrorism. "We were completely surprised to hear about this incident," he said. "We condemn those who sent the boy to blow himself up. He was an innocent and quiet boy. He was a short, naive boy who had been struck in the head when he was a child and has been suffering from an illness since then. We always kept an eye on him because we knew he was a small child. Although he’s 16, he thinks like a 10-year-old." Abu Muhammad said those who sent his nephew on the suicide mission had manipulated him by promising him 72 virgins in heaven and NIS 100. "They deceived him," he said. "He’s a boy who doesn’t know good from bad." The boy’s father, Bilal, expressed his fear that the IDF would now target the family. "We’re very worried that they will come to our house in Nablus," he said. "I prefer to go to them before they come here. I want to talk to my son and find out what happened." He said he is angry at Israel because its actions encourage young men to carry out suicide attacks. Abdo’s mother, Tamam, also criticized those who sent her son to carry out the attack. "I blame those who gave him the explosive belt," she said, adding that she does not know who was responsible. "He’s a small child who can’t even look after himself. He’s only 16... He never had a happy childhood. He still hasn’t seen anything in life." Asked whether she would have supported her son had he been older, the mother replied: "If he was over 18, that would have been possible, and I might even encourage him to do it. But it’s impossible for a child his age to do it." The boy, in a videotape provided to journalists by the IDF, said he decided to blow himself up because "people do not like me." Abdu lives in the comfortable Makhfiyeh neighborhood. He has four sisters and a brother. His brother and father run a supermarket. After school, he used to help out in the shop, play with the computer, and occasionally play soccer – but complained that his friends keep mocking him. "My friends at school make fun of me," he said. "They call me ’Brains ’ but they also make fun of me because I’m small and ugly. They call me ’The Ugly Dwarf.’ It hurt so much I wanted to kill myself." He said he learned about the pleasures of heaven from his teacher. "My teacher in school told us about it," he explained. "He told us to fast, to pray, and to do good deeds to reach paradise. He told us about the life of pleasure which is waiting for us there: a river of honey, a river of wine, and 72 beautiful girls. "Since I am studying the Koran, I know about the good life which awaits there. The people who gave me the suicide belt told me this was my only chance to have sex." He said he decided to become a suicide bomber the night before he was caught at the checkpoint. "On Tuesday night I was sitting with friends, and I made the decision," he said. "When they put the explosives harness on me I was scared. I didn’t tell anyone what I was about to do. I didn’t tell my mother and I didn’t tell my father. "When I reached the checkpoint, I became less scared. But when the soldiers stopped me, I didn’t pull the detonator cord. I changed my mind. I didn’t want to die any more. I took the battery out of the bomb harness." He said he didn’t usually join in demonstrations against the Israelis. "I’ve never thrown any stones, either. What use is a stone? Anyway, I’m frightened of getting into trouble with soldiers." He said he wasn’t motivated by economic distress. "We don’t have any problems. I have a computer, and I like playing ’Terrorist and the Policeman.’ I’ve heard a lot of music on the Internet. At one time I wanted to work in electronics when I grow up – open a store in Nablus and repair radios and televisions. "Now, I know that they will send me to prison for 25 years. I don’t want to be in prison. I’m sorry for what I did." Many residents of Nablus expressed outrage at Abdu’s story, accusing the local armed groups of exploiting innocent children in a cynical and ruthless manner. "This is one of the worst cases I have seen," said a Nablus municipal official. "Whoever recruited this boy should be put on trial. This is a big crime." Khawlah Khalil, a nurse at a local hospital, said she was shocked when she saw the boy on TV removing the eight-kilogram bomb from his body. "This is a barbaric act," she said. "I wasn’t able to sleep all night after watching the boy on TV. This is very harmful to the Palestinian cause." Fatah leaders in the city denied responsibility, arguing that their group does not recruit children for suicide missions. "We don’t use children under the age of 17," said Hashem Abu Hamdan, a local leader of the Aksa Martyrs Brigades. He and other Fatah activists accused Israel of concocting the story with the aim of defaming the Palestinians. Meanwhile, 60 prominent Palestinian officials and intellectuals called on the public to refrain from retaliatory attacks following the assassination of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, saying it would ignite a new round of violence that would only hurt Palestinian hopes for independence. A half-page advertisement in Al-Ayyam urged Palestinians to lay down their arms and turn to peaceful means of protest to end the occupation. Those who signed the petition – including legislator Hanan Ashrawi and Abbas Zaki, a leading member of Fatah – said revenge attacks would lead to a strong Israeli retaliation. The group called on the public to "rise again in a peaceful, wise intifada." They appealed to the Palestinians to reconsider what are the benefits of a violent struggle |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #7 The Palestinians are defeated. Clearly. Ashrawi is now saying it's time quit fighting? They are running out of cannon fodder and battle fatigue has obviously set in. This is the time for Israel to be bold. Take out Rantissi. Take out Arafat. Finish off the leadership. Defeat these people utterly. THEN they can talk, but not until. |
| Posted by: RMcLeod 2004-03-27 3:34:13 AM |
| #6 Secret Master: Yes. Golda Meier said, "We will have peace with the Palestinians when they learn to love their children more than them hate us." She's been dead for years and it ain't happened yet. Nor do I expect it to. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2004-03-26 6:14:21 PM |
| #5 Man, I am not sure at all what to make of this kid's family. Is this normal in Palestine? |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2004-03-26 3:51:11 PM |
| #4 "I changed my mind. I didn’t want to die any more. I took the battery out of the bomb harness." Son, that was really an excellent move. Regardless of what anyone says, you're on the far right-hand side of the bell curve. |
| Posted by: Matt 2004-03-26 2:30:35 PM |
| #3 The Israelis should get this kid laid. I'll bet he would stop reading the Koran then. Poor SOB. Sounds like he could barely determine right from wrong. |
| Posted by: remote man 2004-03-26 1:38:12 PM |
| #2 "The group called on the public to "rise again in a peaceful, wise intifada." They appealed to the Palestinians to reconsider what are the benefits of a violent struggle." At the risk of being the proverbial devil's advocate, I wonder what the Israeli reaction (or lack of reaction) would be if the Palistinians came to a Gandhiesque decision one day and stated, en masse, "We're tired. We've disarmed. We're going home." And then they started walking to Israel from Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon all at once, quietly, peacefully. My gut says, nah, the only people they hate worse than the Israelis are themselves. Never happen. Still... |
| Posted by: James A 2004-03-26 12:48:07 PM |
| #1 Sounds like one very unhappy kid. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-03-26 10:00:05 AM |