The Karkur junction bus bombing was a suicide attack

Suicide attack

A suicide attack is a type of attack in which the attacker expects or intends to die in the process.- Historical :...

  on October 21, 2002 at the Karkur junction near Wadi Ara

Wadi Ara

Wadi Ara or Nahal Iron , refers to an area within Israel that is mostly populated by Arabs. It is located northwest of the Green Line and is mostly within Israel's Haifa District. Today, Highway 65 runs through the wadi.-Geography:...

, Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

. The attack, carried out by Islamic Jihad

Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine

The Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine known in the West as simply Palestinian Islamic Jihad , is a small Palestinian militant organization. The group has been labelled as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia and Israel...

, killed 14 passengers and wounded 50.

The attack

Egged

Egged Bus Cooperative

Egged Israel Transport Cooperative Society Ltd , a cooperative owned by its members is the largest transit bus company in Israel. It provides about 55 % of public transport services throughout the country, employs 6,227 workers and has 2,861 buses for more than 928 service routes and 3,103...

commuter bus 841 was on its way on Route No. 65 from Kiryat Shmona

Kiryat Shmona

Kiryat Shmona is a city located in the North District of Israel on the western slopes of the Hula Valley on the Lebanese border. The city was named for the eight people, including Joseph Trumpeldor, who died in 1920 defending Tel Hai....

 to Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...

 when it stopped at the Karkur Junction

Pardes Hanna-Karkur

Pardes Hanna-Karkur is a town in the Haifa District of Israel. In 2009, it had a population of 31,800.-History:In 1913, 15 square kilometers of land was purchased by the Hachsharat Hayishuv society from Arabs in Jenin and Haifa for 400,000 francs...

, about 8 kilometers from Hadera

Hadera

Hadera is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel approximately from the major cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. The city is located along of the Israeli Mediterranean Coastal Plain...

 at the afternoon rush hour. A passenger got on and spoke to driver Chaim Avraham, but before he could answer, a jeep

Jeep

Jeep is an automobile marque of Chrysler . The first Willys Jeeps were produced in 1941 with the first civilian models in 1945, making it the oldest off-road vehicle and sport utility vehicle brand. It inspired a number of other light utility vehicles, such as the Land Rover which is the second...

 loaded with an estimated 100 kilograms of TNT rammed the back of the bus, causing an explosion. A fire broke out, causing a chain of explosions from the ammunition carried by soldiers who were riding the bus.The explosion ignited the fuel tank, leaving the bus
completely gutted. The blaze initially prevented the police and rescue workers from approaching the bus, which was reduced to a blackened skeleton.

7 Israeli soldiers and 7 civilians were killed in the attack and 50 passengers were wounded.

The terrorist attack came two days before United States Assistant Secretary of State William Burns

William Joseph Burns

William J. Burns , an American diplomat, is the current Deputy Secretary of State and the highest ranked Foreign Service Officer in the United States. He is only the second serving career diplomat in U.S. history to become Deputy Secretary...

 was due to visit Israel as part of a tour of Middle East nations, seeking support for an invasion of Iraq

2003 invasion of Iraq

The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...

.

Fatalities

The victims of the Karkur junction suicide bombing:

Soldiers: Cpl. Sharon Tubol, 19, of Arad Arad, Romania Arad is the capital city of Arad County, in western Romania, in the Crişana region, on the river Mureş.An important industrial center and transportation hub, Arad is also the seat of a Romanian Orthodox archbishop and features two universities, a Romanian Orthodox theological seminary, a training... St.-Sgt. Aiman Sharuf, 20, of Isfiya Isfiya Isfiya , also known as Ussefiya, is a Druze village and local council in northern Israel. Located on Mount Carmel, it is part of Haifa District. In 2009 it had a population of 25,400. In 2003, the local council was merged with nearby Daliyat al-Karmel to form Carmel City... St.-Sgt. Nir Nahum, 20, of Carmiel Sgt.-Maj.(res.) Eliezer Moskovitch, 40, of Petah Tikva Petah Tikva Petah Tikva known as Em HaMoshavot , is a city in the Center District of Israel, east of Tel Aviv.According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, at the end of 2009, the city's population stood at 209,600. The population density is approximately... Cpl. Ilona Hanukayev, 20, of Hadera Hadera Hadera is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel approximately from the major cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. The city is located along of the Israeli Mediterranean Coastal Plain... St.-Sgt. Liat Ben-Ami, 20, of Haifa Haifa Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher... Sgt. Esther Pesachov, 19, of Givat Olga

Civilians: Ofra Burger, 56, of Hod Hasharon Hod HaSharon Hod HaSharon is a city in the Center District of Israel.Officially declared a city in 1990, Hod HaSharon was created from the union in 1964 of four neighboring villages: Magdiel, Ramatayim, Hadar, and Ramat Hadar... Iris Lavi, 68, of Netanya Netanya Netanya is a city in the Northern Centre District of Israel, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is located north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa between the 'Poleg' stream and Wingate Institute in the south and the 'Avichail' stream in the north.Its of beaches have made the... Suad Jaber, 23, of Taibe Indelou Ashati, 54, of Hadera Hadera Hadera is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel approximately from the major cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. The city is located along of the Israeli Mediterranean Coastal Plain... Anat Shimshon, 33, of Ra'anana Ra'anana Ra'anana is a city in the heart of the southern Sharon Plain of the Central District of Israel with a population of 68,300, . Ra'anana is bordered by Kfar Sava on the east and Herzliya on the southwest... Osnat Abramov, 16, of Holon Sergei Shavchuk, 35, of Afula Afula Afula is a city in the North District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley", referring to the Jezreel Valley. The city had a population of 40,500 at the end of 2009.-History:...

The perpetrators

The military wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Al-Quds Brigades, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying that it was carried out by Ashraf al-Asama, 18, and Mohammed al-Hasnin, 19, both from the West Bank city of Jenin

Jenin

Jenin is the largest town in the Northern West Bank, and the third largest city overall. It serves as the administrative center of the Jenin Governorate and is a major agricultural center for the surrounding towns. In 2007, the city had a population of 120,004 not including the adjacent refugee...

.

Official reactions

The Palestinian Authority said it condemned the suicide bombing. An Israeli official expressed skepticism, declaring that “The Palestinian Authority has become a prime authority on terror and could not care less about preventing it."

External links

• 16 Die After Car Blast Causes Bus Fire In Israel - published on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
  The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. It is the primary newspaper in Milwaukee, the largest newspaper in Wisconsin and is distributed widely throughout the state...
  
   on October 22, 2002‎
• Suicide car-bomb attack kills 14 in Israel - published on The Independent
  The Independent
  The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
  
   on October 22, 2002‎
• Bus Blast in Israel Kills at Least 14; Explosive-Laden Vehicle Sets Off Rush-Hour Inferno; 50 Injured - published on The Washington Post
  The Washington Post
  The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
  
   on October 22, 2002‎
• Terror attack kills 14 in Israel - published on CNN
  CNN
  Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
  
  on October 21, 2002‎
• Suicide bombing of Egged bus No 841 at Karkur junction - published at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs