Hamas celebrates 11th anniversary of Rishon LeZion terror attack

Hamas might be telling Western media that it never targets civilians, but in Arabic it celebrates the deaths of innocents it killed every day.

The latest on the Al Qassam website (only the Arabic version, naturally) celebrates the 11th anniversary of the Rishon LeZion terror attack. Wikipedia describes the attack:

On Tuesday, 7 May 2002 at 11:03 pm, a Palestinian suicide bomber detonated a hidden

explosive device within a crowded game club full of people located in the new industrial area of Rishon Lezion, only 10 km south of Tel Aviv, killing 16 innocent civilians and injuring 55 people, 10 of them in critical condition.

After the attack the Israeli police stated that the suicide bomber was carrying a briefcase full of explosives and in addition was also wearing an explosive belt. The police estimated that the total weight of explosives were between 7 to 8 kilograms, and stated that the briefcase contained also metal fragments and bolts in order to maximize the number of casualties in the attack.

Ten of the fatalities were over 50 years old.

Hamas calls it a "heroic" operation, saying thatover 20 "Zionists" were killed and over 60 injured, "most of them in critical condition."

Hamas didn't take credit for the attack until six years later, when it held a "wedding feast" for the bomber and his fictional virgins in paradise. His daughter is quoted as being proud of her terrorist father.

The woman who drive the bomber to the attack was caught and sentenced to 20 years - but was released in the Gilad Shalit swap .