Four more Israelis were murdered yesterday in the continuing Palestinian terrorism war against Israel. At around 8:30 PM last night, three Israelis were felled when a suicide terrorist from a Jenin-area village (northern Shomron) detonated a powerful bomb on board a public bus, ripping it apart. The victims were Yechiav Elshad, 28, of Hadera; Inbal Weiss, 22, of Zikhron Yaakov; and a third person whose name was not released. Seven wounded remain hospitalized in Hadera\'s Hillel Yaffe Hospital. Fatah and Islamic Jihad claimed joint responsibility for the murderous attack.
The bus driver and a passenger who sat behind him were spared the full force of the explosive, which was detonated in the back of the bus. They said that they noticed the well-dressed Arab board the bus outside the Israeli-Arab city of Um el-Fahm. They noted chillingly that two other well-dressed Arabs accompanied him to the bus, and that one of them clapped him on the back as he boarded. The bus was headed from Nazareth Illit in the southern Galilee southwest to Tel Aviv; the terrorist bought a ticket for Hadera. The driver noted that it was fortunate that there were few passengers on the bus, which was torn in half by the force of the blast.
Earlier yesterday afternoon, Islamic Jihad gunmen shot two Israeli soldiers near Baka el-Sharkiye, very close to the Green Line in the northwestern Shomron. The attack claimed the life of St.-Sgt. Yaron Pikholtz, 20, of Ramat Gan, and left a second soldier wounded in moderate condition. The death of Yaron left his former schoolmates stunned; the principal said simply, \"He was the most popular boy in the school, a pure soul who helped anyone who needed...\" Yaron edited the school paper and headed the Student Council; he will be buried this afternoon in the Kiryat Sha\'ul Military Cemetery.
The bus driver and a passenger who sat behind him were spared the full force of the explosive, which was detonated in the back of the bus. They said that they noticed the well-dressed Arab board the bus outside the Israeli-Arab city of Um el-Fahm. They noted chillingly that two other well-dressed Arabs accompanied him to the bus, and that one of them clapped him on the back as he boarded. The bus was headed from Nazareth Illit in the southern Galilee southwest to Tel Aviv; the terrorist bought a ticket for Hadera. The driver noted that it was fortunate that there were few passengers on the bus, which was torn in half by the force of the blast.
Earlier yesterday afternoon, Islamic Jihad gunmen shot two Israeli soldiers near Baka el-Sharkiye, very close to the Green Line in the northwestern Shomron. The attack claimed the life of St.-Sgt. Yaron Pikholtz, 20, of Ramat Gan, and left a second soldier wounded in moderate condition. The death of Yaron left his former schoolmates stunned; the principal said simply, \"He was the most popular boy in the school, a pure soul who helped anyone who needed...\" Yaron edited the school paper and headed the Student Council; he will be buried this afternoon in the Kiryat Sha\'ul Military Cemetery.