(World

Guards Save Lives

Explosion would have been deadlier inside Netanya mall.

Dan Baron

the city, and those who drop off
the bombers are able to make a
quick getaway. Netanya is locat-
Tel Aviv
ed close to Israel's pre-1967
n Islamic Jihad terrorist border with the Palestinian ter-
blew himself up Dec. 5 • ritories.
outside the Sharon Mall
The Israel Defense Forces
in Netanya, which has seen sev- . . were-preparing Monday
eral such attacks due to its prox-
evening for a wide-spread retal-
imity to the West Bank. * -
iatory operation in the West
At least five people were killed
Bank and strikes in the Gaza
and more than 50 wounded. The
Strip. The newspaper Ha'aretz
bomber was identified as a 21-
reported that the operation
year-old man from the West
could last up to a month.
Bank.
Defense Minister Shaul
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel
Mofaz ordered security forces
Sharon, already under pressure
to wage an intensified crack-
following a weekend of rocket
down on Islamic Jihad in the
salvoes into Israel from the 'Gaza
northern West*Bank.
Strip, convened his government's
Reinforced army units are
top officivals for consultations.
expected to reoccupy villages
Guards identified the bomber
where Islamic Jihad terrorists
as a potential terrorist as he
are hiding.
approached the mall around
The army will also severely
11:30 a.m. and pinned him
restrict travel in the West Bank,
against the wall. But he managed and Israel has clamped a near-
to detonate explosives in his bag, complete closure on the territo-
killing a security guard and sev-
ries, the Jerusalem Post report-
eral other people nearby.
ed.
Tile fact that the security
The U.S. State Department
guard and policemen managed
said the attack underscored the
to identify the bomber meant
need for the Palestinian
. that they prevented a major dis-
Authority and Syria, which
aster," Israel Police Commissioner hosts Islamic Jihad, to crack
Moshe Karadi said.
down on terrorist groups. "The
Netanya Mayor Miriam
PaleStinian Authority must take
Fierberg said the day started out
immediate steps to prevent
as a perfect one for her city. The
these attacks, to end the vio-
weather was unseasonably warm lence and to dismantle the
and she was hosting a party at
infrastructure of terrorism:'
city hall celebrating the decision
spokesman Adam Ereli said
by Elbit, a major Israeli high-tech Monday.
firm, to move to Netanya. Then
Sensing that the situation
her cell phone rang and she got
could spiral out of control,
word of the attack.
Palestinian Authority President
"This is the way we have to live Mahmoud Abbas condemned
here and to cope," she said in a
the Netanya bombing and
conference call with Jewish fed-
pledged to arrest those respon-
eration Officials in Cincinnati,
sible. But belying Abbas' words,
Netanya's sister city, between vis- Islamic Jihad held a press con-
its to the hospital to check on the ference in Gaza City, which is
wounded.
under full P.A. control, to cele-
It was the third attack on the
brate the attack.
shopping mall, Fierberg said. The
Sharon's right-wing rivals in
mall presents an attractive target the Likud Party — which he left
because it is at the entrance to
last month, founding a new, cen-

Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Israeli police inspect the site where a
Palestinian suicide bomber blew himself

up outside a Netanya shopping mall.

A

.

34

December 8 • 2005

al

Israeli rescue personnel remove a
victim from the suicide bombing site
in Netanya.

trist party to compete in March
28 general elections — lost no
time in condemning him.
"Thanks to Sharon, we risk
seeing a terror base being creat-

ed right next to the Dan region:'
legislator Uzi Landau told
reporters. "Today's terror attack
is only a sign of things to come:'
Landau withdrew from the Likud

primary race Monday to endorse
the front-runner, Benjamin
Netanyahu.
Other candidates include
Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom