Palestinian woman behind Haifa blast

A Palestinian woman blew herself up in a crowded beachfront restaurant at lunchtime today, killing herself and 17 bystanders, including three children.

It was one of the deadliest attacks in the past three years and prompting new calls for Yasser Arafat’s expulsion.

About 40 people, both Jews and Arabs, were wounded in the attack on the Arab-owned Maxim Restaurant in the northern port city of Haifa.

There was no claim of responsibility for the Sabbath bombing, which came two days before Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar.

A Beirut-based Hamas official welcomed the Haifa bombing, but stopped short of claiming responsibility.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon called his advisers for an emergency meeting this evening to weigh a response.

On September 11, the Israeli Cabinet decided to “remove” Arafat, implying expulsion or assassination, but did not say at the time when it would take action.

Sharon has hinted that Israel might act against Arafat in response to an attack with many casualties.

However, the United States opposes expelling Arafat and Israel’s security chiefs are divided on the issue. Sharon and Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz have the final say.

They do not need Cabinet approval for deciding to take action against Arafat. Mofaz has spoken in favour of expulsion.

Israeli Health Minister Dan Naveh said Israel must not hesitate. “This awful attack today is definitely an opportunity, the correct opportunity, to implement the Cabinet decision to get rid of Arafat,” he said. “It is clear to all of us that he is the biggest obstacle to reach better days.”

The chief Palestinian negotiator, Saeb Erekat, said he is “worried about an Israeli action against President Arafat or against the Palestinian people that may just add to the complexities”.

The explosion went off shortly after 2pm (midday Irish time) at Maxim Restaurant, near a major junction at the southern entrance to Haifa.

A motorist, identified only as Navon, said he was at the junction when he heard the blast, and rushed to the scene where he saw smoke and blown-out windows.

“There were not a lot of wounded, just a lot of people strewn on the ground. There was nothing to do, no way to help them,” he said, adding that children were among the dead.

The blast blew out windows. Walls inside were riddled with holes, wires hung down from the ceiling and clusters of pipes were exposed. Chunks were blown off pillars throughout the restaurant.

Among the wounded were several members of the Maccabi Haifa football club. The players and staff traditionally meet at the restaurant every Saturday.

General Manager Itamar Chizik, technical manager Arieh Burstein and team coach Ronni Levi were lightly wounded. Captain Arik Benado said other players were expected at the restaurant, but had not yet arrived when the explosion took place.

The bombing brought to 103 the number of suicide bombings in the past three years of Israeli-Palestinian fighting. At least 431 people have been killed in these attacks.

Some reports said the bomber shot and killed a security guard at the entrance before rushing into the restaurant which, if confirmed, would be a change in tactics.

In the past, several bombers were stopped outside restaurants, cafes and shopping malls by security guards.

Police Commissioner Shlomo Aharonishki said it was not clear whether shots were fired. However, a person dressed in the reflective vest commonly worn by security guard was seen lying face down on the front steps.

The incoming Palestinian prime minister, Ahmed Qureia, condemned today’s bombing as an “ugly attack” and urged all Palestinian groups to stop violence against civilians.

Qureia also called the Haifa mayor, Yona Yahav, to express his condemnation of the attack.

David Baker, an official in Sharon’s office, said the blast shows that “the Palestinian Authority continues to refuse to take even minimal steps against the terrorist infrastructure”.

The attack came despite a blanket closure Israel had imposed yesterday on the West Bank and Gaza Strip ahead of Yom Kippur, which begins at sundown tomorrow and ends at sundown on Monday.

Such closures are generally imposed during Jewish holidays because of increased concerns about attacks by Palestinian militants in such periods.

It was the first suicide bombing since twin attacks killed 15 people on September 9, near an army base outside Tel Aviv and at a Jerusalem coffee shop.

Those attacks prompted the Cabinet’s threat against Arafat.

The attack came after the violent Hamas group declared that a security barrier Israel is building around the West Bank would not stop suicide bombers from reaching Israeli cities.

The militant group also said it would continue to send Palestinians to blow themselves up inside Israel.

“This wall will not protect the Zionist entity and will not stop the attacks of resistance and, God willing, the day will come when this wall will collapse as the Berlin wall collapsed,” said a statement, signed by Hamas, posted on a pro-Hamas Web site late last night.

Earlier this week, the Israeli Cabinet approved a new phase of the barrier project that will add fences deep inside the West Bank to shield four large Jewish settlements.

Palestinians and the United States have opposed the path of the barrier, saying it would pre-empt peace agreements and unilaterally define the border of a Palestinian state.

Israeli officials have said wide gaps would be left – for now – between the new fences and the main barrier being built closer to Israel’s frontier with the West Bank. Connecting the fences would slice the West Bank in half.