The heroic actions of a security guard at a southern Tel Aviv nightclub late last night averted yet another major terrorist attack in central Israel. At about 1:00 AM, a car laden with explosives and driven by an Arab terrorist charged towards the nightclubs located on Kibbutz Galuyot Street. Eli Federman, a nightclub security guard, warned bystanders to take cover, pushed aside some others, and fired at the car. The shots apparently stopped the driver, undoubtedly saving the lives of many of the club’s hundreds of patrons. The terrorist himself managed to extricate himself from the damaged vehicle, at which point the car exploded, killing him. Federman later said that he saw the car swerve sharply out of his lane and towards the club. A half-hour beforehand, a police car drove by and reminded Federman to be extra alert in light of the security warnings.
The attack ended with one bystander injured (light-to-moderate condition), and a second person treated for shock. Police sappers defused the remaining explosives, including many pipe bombs, without incident. The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, a branch of PLO leader Yasser Arafat’s Fatah organization, claimed responsibility for the failed attack.
Security guard Eli Federman, 36, of Modi’in, married with two children, is the son of Etzel fighter David Federman and brother of Hevron activist Noam Federman - who is now in police custody on suspicions related to a Jewish plot (see below) to bomb an Arab school in Jerusalem. (Noam has been acquitted over 30 times on charges initiated by the GSS.) Eilat’s Princess Hotel announced that it would be awarding the hero a free weekend suite, as its way of saying “thank you.”
The attack ended with one bystander injured (light-to-moderate condition), and a second person treated for shock. Police sappers defused the remaining explosives, including many pipe bombs, without incident. The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, a branch of PLO leader Yasser Arafat’s Fatah organization, claimed responsibility for the failed attack.
Security guard Eli Federman, 36, of Modi’in, married with two children, is the son of Etzel fighter David Federman and brother of Hevron activist Noam Federman - who is now in police custody on suspicions related to a Jewish plot (see below) to bomb an Arab school in Jerusalem. (Noam has been acquitted over 30 times on charges initiated by the GSS.) Eilat’s Princess Hotel announced that it would be awarding the hero a free weekend suite, as its way of saying “thank you.”