Thursday, November 23, 2006

Ramattan: "Old female bomber takes the world by surprise"

I wouldn't say that the world was "taken by surprise." It is very hard to be surprised by this sort of thing anymore, fortunately for her intended victims. This has some interesting details absent from other accounts: the de rigueur handed out sweets, the greetings to Haniyeh and Al-Daif, etc. Also, the stun grenade appears simply as a grenade.
“I offer my self up for the sake of Allah and in sacrifice to the homeland. I am flaming up [with rage] over the [fate] of the homeland, martyrs and prisoners,” these seemed to be the final words which the sixty-year-old Fatyma al-Najar uttered, during reading her videotaped will, shortly before she blew herself up next to Israeli soldiers operating in the northern Gaza Strip.

Living more than six decades in a modest house in the volatile Gaza Strip, Mrs al-Najar had experienced a lot and bore a load during her lifetime. She is a mother of eight children and tens of grandchildren and ran into the bitter episodes of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to the very end.

Three of her sons where arrested by the Israeli forces in 1987, one of whom was sentenced to 25 years but was released 1997. She had two of her sons injured by Israeli fire over the first Palestinian uprising in 1978. Her house was also destroyed at the time. In 2004 her grandson was gunned down by Israeli troops during offensive in the northern tract of the Gaza Strip.

Acting on her will, her family started, as soon as she was on the news as a martyr, to dole out sweets to several hundred mourners who rushed to her family’s house pay condolences.

Abiding by her will, the atmosphere at her house was much as a celebration than death ceremonies. “To my sons and daughters I call for them not to weep over my death and to dole out sweets to people,” Fatama said as she was reading out her will, with an M16 rifle slung on her shoulders.

She also sent her greetings to the Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and to the Palestinians ministers as well as Mohammad Al-Daif, the supreme commander of Hamas’s military arm.

Her daughter Fathiya said that her family received the news gladly. “It did honour to her family and to her townspeople. She liked sacrifice,” Fathiya talked about her mother.

Mrs al-Najar said that she took part into the women demonstration which provided a cover for besieged fighters in Beit Hanoun to smuggle out in women clothes three weeks ago, Ms Fathiya revealed.
Some apologists for the Palestinians were denying this part right after it happened. And the word "protestors" is still widely used for these women.
A spokesman of the Israeli army said that Mrs al-Najar tried to blow herself up in the midst of a group of Israeli soldiers; however, the troops realized her intention and throw a grenade at her killing her and making her explosives go off nex to them.

“The Israeli troops operating in eastern Jabalia Town opened fire at a Palestinian explosives-wielding woman when she bore down on them, causing her explosives to go off halfway. Two Israeli soldiers were lightly injured by the ensuing spray of shrapnel,” he said.

The military arm of Hamas, Izelden al-Qassam, claimd responsibility for the attack, and said the attack was in vengeance against the Israeli attacks on the Palestinians.

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