Nine Israelis Killed in Twin Blasts

14/03/2004| IslamWeb

Two explosions have killed at least nine people at seaport of Ashdod. Details are still emerging but Israeli police said on Sunday that it was an apparent human bombing as two of the bodies belong to the bombers themselves. Police initially believed that the explosions were set off accidentally in a workshop in the port. Israeli rescue services spokesman said "some of the victims were thrown a long distance" by the blasts. At least 19 people were injured in the blasts, eight seriously. One of the bombers reportedly exploded just outside the main gate to the port. The second managed to enter the facility and detonated his bomb just a short time later in a centrally-located workshop inside the port. A member of al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade identified the assailants as Nabil Massud, 18, and Muhammad Salim, also 18, from the Jabaliya refugee camp. Israeli Cabinet Minister Yosef Paritzky said that the assailants "found a weak point and exploited it". Ashdod is 40 km north of the Gaza Strip, a hotbed of Palestinian resistance fighters who have vowed revenge after Israeli soldiers killed 14 people in a raid on 7 March. **Summit cancelled*** Due to the bombing the planned summit between the Israeli and Palestinian premiers was cancelled, Israeli officials said. Aides to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his Palestinian counterpart, Ahmed Quraya, had met on Sunday and planned to meet again on Monday to finalise plans for the leaders' first summit since Quraya took office in October. The summit had been tentatively scheduled for Tuesday. **PHOTO CAPTION*** Israeli rescue workers stand next to dead bodies in Ashdod, March 14, 2004. (Nir Elias/Reuters)