An Arab suicide bomber entered the Sbarro Restaurant in the center of Jerusalem shortly before 2:00 PM today, positioned himself in the center of a crowd, and within seconds detonated a powerful charge leaving 15 dead, and another approximately 130 injured, some still fighting for their lives. Among the wounded were small children and babies. The powerful blast rocked and showered the area with shards of glass, metallic fragments and nails. Eyewitnesses report that they knew immediately the blast was a terrorist bomb, adding that the sound of the explosion was ear piercing. The Sbarro Restaurant, on the corner of Jaffa Rd. and King George St. was totally destroyed in the explosion.
The scene was one of panic and horror. Bodies were strewn all over. The busy location is just a two-minute walk from the Machane Yehuda marketplace where thousands make their way to shop for the upcoming Sabbath. Nechemia, an eyewitness, was in a nearby restaurant and described what he saw: \"I saw a young girl on the ground with blood gushing from her head and mouth. She signaled me for help, and when I went over to her, I realized that I couldn\'t help, because I am not a medic. I ran to alert a medic of her condition, and he came over. I am in shock.\"
The response by emergency personnel to the blast was almost instantaneous; their units have been on heightened alert in the capital in recent weeks, in light of intelligence community warnings of impending attacks. The first police and ambulances arrived within two minutes, and began to assess the horrific site. All major hospitals in Jerusalem immediately implemented disaster plans, such as calling on all off duty personnel to report for duty.
Police are not releasing details at this time but they state with confidence that the bomb was very big and contained a large amount of steel nails, which was immediately evident in the number of wounded arriving in area hospitals punctured by the nails. There are conflicting reports that in subsequent searches, police reportedly found and safely dismantled a pipe bomb at the scene.
At 4:13 PM, while dozens of persons uninjured by the blast were standing near the scene, pandemonium again struck as reports of a second bombing at Jerusalem\'s Central Bus station spread through the crowd. Police and ambulance sirens again filled Jaffa road, and the crowds dispersed in fear of being caught in yet another atrocity. But this second alert proved to be a false alarm. As it turned out, a tire blew on this hot August day.
As is always the case following major attacks, phone systems, especially cellular telephone providers, crashed due to the sudden demand by persons trying to reach loved ones. Telephone lines in the capital remained strained for an hour and many persons were unable to verify the whereabouts of family and friends who might have been in the area of the massacre.
In a televised exchange of views, Ehud Ya\'ari, Israel Television\'s expert on Arab terrorism, said that anyone, like my colleague here Danny Rubenstein (Haaretz\'s Arab Affairs editor), who says that the suicide bombings are the Arab response to our taking down their leaders, is simply not reading the map and what they are saying. \"They are in the midst of a terrorist offensive, continuing from where the 1948 War of Independence left off.\"
IsraelNationalNews.com will continue monitoring the carnage and expected Israeli retaliation throughout the evening and nighttime hours. For continuous, up-to-the-minute coverage, one may visit the \"Latest News\" section of our website http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
For analysis of today\'s and current events, tune into Arutz Sheva Israel National Radio\'s English Broadcasts live on the internet beginning at 9:00 PM (2:00 PM EDT), with news every half hour.
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The scene was one of panic and horror. Bodies were strewn all over. The busy location is just a two-minute walk from the Machane Yehuda marketplace where thousands make their way to shop for the upcoming Sabbath. Nechemia, an eyewitness, was in a nearby restaurant and described what he saw: \"I saw a young girl on the ground with blood gushing from her head and mouth. She signaled me for help, and when I went over to her, I realized that I couldn\'t help, because I am not a medic. I ran to alert a medic of her condition, and he came over. I am in shock.\"
The response by emergency personnel to the blast was almost instantaneous; their units have been on heightened alert in the capital in recent weeks, in light of intelligence community warnings of impending attacks. The first police and ambulances arrived within two minutes, and began to assess the horrific site. All major hospitals in Jerusalem immediately implemented disaster plans, such as calling on all off duty personnel to report for duty.
Police are not releasing details at this time but they state with confidence that the bomb was very big and contained a large amount of steel nails, which was immediately evident in the number of wounded arriving in area hospitals punctured by the nails. There are conflicting reports that in subsequent searches, police reportedly found and safely dismantled a pipe bomb at the scene.
At 4:13 PM, while dozens of persons uninjured by the blast were standing near the scene, pandemonium again struck as reports of a second bombing at Jerusalem\'s Central Bus station spread through the crowd. Police and ambulance sirens again filled Jaffa road, and the crowds dispersed in fear of being caught in yet another atrocity. But this second alert proved to be a false alarm. As it turned out, a tire blew on this hot August day.
As is always the case following major attacks, phone systems, especially cellular telephone providers, crashed due to the sudden demand by persons trying to reach loved ones. Telephone lines in the capital remained strained for an hour and many persons were unable to verify the whereabouts of family and friends who might have been in the area of the massacre.
In a televised exchange of views, Ehud Ya\'ari, Israel Television\'s expert on Arab terrorism, said that anyone, like my colleague here Danny Rubenstein (Haaretz\'s Arab Affairs editor), who says that the suicide bombings are the Arab response to our taking down their leaders, is simply not reading the map and what they are saying. \"They are in the midst of a terrorist offensive, continuing from where the 1948 War of Independence left off.\"
IsraelNationalNews.com will continue monitoring the carnage and expected Israeli retaliation throughout the evening and nighttime hours. For continuous, up-to-the-minute coverage, one may visit the \"Latest News\" section of our website http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
For analysis of today\'s and current events, tune into Arutz Sheva Israel National Radio\'s English Broadcasts live on the internet beginning at 9:00 PM (2:00 PM EDT), with news every half hour.
9:00 PM News
Jay Shapiro Commentary on Current Events
10:00 PM News
Dr. Aaron Lerner
Torah Tidbits + Call in show with listener\'s comments
11:00 PM News
Sha\'i ben-Tekoa Commentary on Current Events
Tune in at
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/metafiles/asx/israelnationalradio.asx