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Paramedics remove body from the scene of the bombing (AP)
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| By Associated Press December 29, 2005 |
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A suicide bomber blew up in a taxi stopped at a checkpoint in Samaria on Thursday morning, killing an Israeli officer, First Lieutenant Uri Binamo, three other Palestinians and wounding 3 soldiers and several other Palestinians.
The army said the explosion at 9:30 am occurred at a roadblock set up between two Jewish communities near Tulkarm, just east of the Israeli coastal city of Netanya.
Israel Radio said the attacker blew himself up in a taxi stopped at the checkpoint. The wounded Israeli soldiers were evacuated to Tel Hashomer hospital in Tel Aviv.
Security officials say the terrorist was probably enroute to a suicide bombing in Israel, possibly in the nearby coastal city of Netanya, where the last bombing was carried out on December 7. The army deployed soldiers to perform spot checks throughout Samaria after intelligence tips indicated that terrorists were planning to execute an attack.
According to the IDF, soldiers stopped the Palestinian taxi at the roadblock to conduct a security check. Three passengers exited the taxi, including the bomber, who was wearing a large overcoat. The roadblock commander requested that the bomber open his coat to be searched. The bomber then opened his coat and detonated the explosives belt concealed under his coat.
The belt had been wired to a very large amount of explosives and also had nails and other metallic debris attached to it. The officer was killed, an IDF soldier was severely wounded and two additional soldiers were moderately wounded as a result of the explosion and shrapnel. The wounded soldiers were evacuated to receive further treatment in the hospital.
Shin Bet Chief Yuval Diskin referred Thursday evening to the morning's explosion near Tulkarm, crediting the casualty for saving many lives. "If First Lieutenant Binamo and his friends had not blocked the suicide bomber with their bodies, this day would have ended much worse," Diskin said.
In addition to the suicide bomber, three Palestinians were also killed in the bombing, the driver of the taxi and two additional passengers. Their involvement in the bombing is being investigated. Additional Palestinians, wounded as a result of the explosion, were evacuated by Palestinian medical services.
"I was standing by the checkpoint south of Tul Karm when I heard an explosion and there was another explosion near an Israeli jeep at the checkpoint," said a Palestinian witness, who was hit by shrapnel, Haaretz reported.
For several weeks, IDF forces have been operating intensively against West Bank terrorists planning to carry out attacks.
Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack.
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