This was Hamas. They went after Americans here on purpose. Made no bones about it.
No, Hamas made no bones about going after Israelis or Jews visiting Israel, even if they are American Jews. But Hamas does not intentionally attack Americans, per se. You are twisting the story here, LB.
American Jews traveling into Israel are well aware of the dangers involved. If they aren't, well, they are pretty naive.
I am not defending Hamas for their actions but my assertion that Hamas does not deliberately target Americans still holds.
abcnews.go.com
Bodies of U.S. Victims Arrive Home
At a tearful ceremony at Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport, the bodies of two of the American victims were put aboard an El Al plane that arrived in New York early today.
Simple wooden caskets held the remains of Benjamin Blutstein, 25, of Susquehanna Township, Pa., and Janis Ruth Coulter, 36, who worked in New York.
At the ceremony, U.S. Ambassador Daniel Kurtzer said, "Their lives are testimony to the values shared by the U.S. and Israel, lives of religious commitment and tolerance. Terrorists cannot live by these values, so they murder beautiful young people."
The violent Islamic Hamas took responsibility for the bombing, saying it was retaliation for last week's Israeli airstrike in Gaza City that killed a top Hamas commander and 14 other people, including nine children.
Hamas spokesman Abdel Aziz Rantisi said Thursday that America should "advise its citizens not to go to areas of war."
Hamas Expresses Regret for Killings
But today, he expressed regret for the deaths of the Americans. "They are American citizens who just came here to visit," he told The Associated Press. "Our battle is against the occupation." However, he said he was referring only to "pure" American citizens, "not those who have dual [U.S.-Israeli] citizenship."
One of the victims was a dual citizen, Dina Carter, 37, who was buried in Jerusalem today.
The body of Marla Bennett, 24, from San Diego, Calif., is to be flown home on Saturday. Another victim, David Gritz, 24, was a dual French-U.S. citizen. |
