From Ha'aretz of today.
[b]Female suicide bomber kills one, wounds over 100 in J'lem [/b]
[i]By Baruch Kra and Haim Shadmi, Ha'aretz Correspondents, and Ha'aretz Service and agencies.[/i]
Hezbollah's television station Al Manar has identified the suicide bomber who killed at least one Israeli and wounded more than 100 people in downtown Jerusalem Sunday afternoon as a female student from Nablus.
The dead Israeli was identified as 81-year-old Pinchus Toktaly. He will be laid to rest in Jerusalem Monday at 3 P.M.
This was first suicide attack carried out by a woman. She studied at the A-Najach University in Nablus, defined as a "hothouse for suicide bomber" by the Shin Bet security services. At least six of the 120 suicide bombers who have carried out attacks against Israeli targets were students at the university, which is also considered a Hamas stronghold.
No group took immediate responsibility for the blast, and Hamas leader in Gaza, Mahmoud Al Zahar, refused to say whether his organization was behind the bombing, saying only that Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon "destroys homes and kills innocent people, and then the Palestinians come and carry out suicide bombing attacks into Israel".
Of the wounded, two were in serious condition, four sustained moderate wounds and the rest light injuries.
The wounded were taken to Bikur Holim Hospital and Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem and to Hadassah University Hospital, Ein Karem.
Jerusalem police chief Mickey Levy said that there were police officers among the injured.
Levy himself was hospitalized not long after the bombing, complaining of chest pains. He suffered a major heart attack upon arrival at Bikur Holim Hospital and is in serious condition.
This is the second attack in less than one week in the same area. Two Israelis were killed and dozens wounded when a Palestinian opened fire at the lower end of Jaffa Street last week.
Aharoniski, Olmert urge Israelis to stand firm
Israel Police Chief Shlomo Aharonishki said that he appreciated the fear that Israelis, and Jerusalem residents in particular, were feeling, but urged them to "be strong."
"I say to Israel and the residents of Jerusalem I understand the fear and the stress that we are facing, but we have to understand the reality we live in," he said. "We have to be strong, we have to be alert and have to keep going about our daily routine because that's the best way to fight terrorism."
Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert also urged the city's residents to courageous in the face of what he referred to as a ongoing war.
"We are in the midst of a war which will not end in the next few days; it will unfortunately cost many victims," he said. "We have to deal with it with courage, not be deterred and do all that is possible to make the suffering are little as possible. I am counting on our citizens to know how to deal with this pain, with courage and with as much restraint as possible."
The Palestinian Authority quickly condemned the attack. "The Palestinian leadership strongly condemns the suicide attack against Israeli civilians in Jerusalem," said a statement by the PA leadership. It also called for the return of U.S. Middle East envoy Anthony Zinni "to resume the trilateral security coordination and negotiations without delay."
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