King George Street bombing

The King George Street bombing was a suicide bombing which occurred on March 21, 2002 outside a clothing store and toy shop on King George Street in Jerusalem. Three Israeli civilians were killed in the attack.

The Palestinian militant organization al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility for the attack.

The attack
On Thursday afternoon, 21 March 2002, a Palestinian suicide bomber detonated the explosive device, hidden underneath his jacket, in the middle of Jerusalem's shopping district in the King George Street in downtown Jerusalem amongst a crowd of shoppers.

The blast killed three civilians and more than 40 people were wounded, seven of them seriously.

Fatalities

 * Yitzhak Cohen, 48, of Modi'in
 * Tsipi Shemesh, 29 (5 months pregnant with twins)
 * Gadi Shemesh, 34

The perpetrators
After the attack the Palestinian militia al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility for the bombing and stated that the perpetrator was Mohammad Hashaika, a 22-year-old from the West Bank village of Talouza near Nablus. Hashaika was a member of the Tanzim and a former Palestinian policeman. Later on, it was revealed that Hashaika was actually for allegedly planning to carry out an earlier attack. Nevertheless, the Palestinian authority released him a week earlier before he managed to carry out the suicide bombing.