Island of Peace massacre
Encyclopedia
The Island of Peace massacre was a Mass murder
attack that occurred at the Island of Peace site in Naharayim
on March 13, 1997 in which a Jordanian soldier
opened fire at a large group of Israeli schoolgirls from the AMIT
Fuerst School in Beit Shemesh who were on a class field trip
, killing seven of them and injuring six others.
On Thursday, March 13, 1997, 80 seventh and eight grade schoolgirls from the Feurst School in Beit Shemesh, west of Jerusalem, were on a field trip
to the Jordan Valley and the Golan Heights. Part of the trip was to Naharayim
, visiting the "Island of Peace", a joint Israeli-Jordanian tourist resort under Jordanian rule.
During the afternoon, the class reached the "Island of Peace" site, the girls got off the bus. As the girls were heading towards the observatory a Jordanian soldier stationed at the site, opened fire on the group with an M-16 rifle. The perpetrator managed to killed 7 girls and wounded five schoolgirls and a teacher others before his rifle jammed
and the Jordanian soldiers seized him.
Corporal
Ahmed Daqamseh. The motive of the attack was not immediately apparent but Daqamseh later claimed that he attacked because the students had ridiculed him while he was praying.
Speaking on Al Jazeera
in May 2001, Daqamseh's mother said, "I am proud of my son, and I hold my head high. My son did a heroic deed and has pleased Allah and his own conscience. My son lifts my head and the head of the entire Arab and Islamic nation. I am proud of any Muslim who does what Ahmad did. I hope that I am not saying something wrong. When my son went to prison, they asked him: 'Ahmad, do you regret it?' He answered: 'I have no regrets.' He treated everyone to coffee, honored all the other prisoners, and said: The only thing that I am angry about is the gun, which did not work properly. Otherwise I would have killed all of the passengers on the bus."
On March 16, 1997, A few days after the attack, King Hussein of Jordan personally apologized for the incident, travelling to Israel to visit and pay respects to the grieving families of the seven murdered girls during the traditional Jewish mourning ceremony known as shiva. King Hussein's visit to the parents of the victims was broadcast live in Israel and Jordan. During the visit, in which King Hussein stood alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
, he expressed an apology on behalf of the Kingdom of Jordan telling the parents, "Your daughter is like my daughter. Your loss is my loss." He added that they were all "members of one family" and that the shooting was "a crime that is a shame for all of us... I feel as if I have lost a child of my own. If there is any purpose in life it will be to make sure that all the children no longer suffer the way our generation did."
Afterwards King Hussein also visited the wounded schoolgirls in the hospital, and ordered to provide financial compensation to the families affected by the attack.
King Hussein's sincere act was an unusual act in the history of the Israeli-Arab conflict which deeply moved the mourning Israeli public and helped improve the relationship between the two countries after the attack. Nevertheless, various Jordanian individuals and groups criticized King Hussein's act for prostrating himself before Jews.
In July 1997, a five-member Jordanian military tribunal
found Daqamseh guilty of killing the Israeli schoolgirls, sentencing him to life imprisonment at hard labor. Under Jordanian law, a life sentence is equivalent to 25 years in prison. He could have faced the death penalty but the tribunal spared him because he was determined to be mentally unstable.
, part of the larger 2010–2011 Arab world protests against the region's established regimes.
Mjali previously served as the defense lawyer of Daqamseh in his 1997 trial. As an Arab nationalist
opposed to the 1994 Israel–Jordan peace treaty, Mjali views Daqamseh as a hero who should not be in prison. The Israeli Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that Mjali’s comments were received in Israel with "revulsion and shock." Israeli Embassy spokeswoman Merav Horsandi said it "is difficult for us to comprehend how there are people who support the release of a cold-blooded murderer of young children."
To allay Israeli concerns and anger regarding a possible early release, Jordan's foreign ministry issued a statement reassuring that Daqamseh would serve out his life sentence and that Mjali had just expressed his personal opinion.
Mass murder
Mass murder is the act of murdering a large number of people , typically at the same time or over a relatively short period of time. According to the FBI, mass murder is defined as four or more murders occurring during a particular event with no cooling-off period between the murders...
attack that occurred at the Island of Peace site in Naharayim
Naharayim
Naharayim is a site on the border between Israel and Jordan where an hydroelectric power-plant was established in 1930. The Yarmuk River flows into the Jordan River at Naharayim. The plant, established by Pinchas Rutenberg, produced much of the energy consumed in the British Mandate of Palestine...
on March 13, 1997 in which a Jordanian soldier
Jordanian Armed Forces
The Jordanian Armed Forces , also referred to as The Arab Army , with all of it branches, is under direct control of the King of Jordan...
opened fire at a large group of Israeli schoolgirls from the AMIT
AMIT
AMIT is an American Jewish Zionist volunteer organization, dedicated to education in Israel and nurturing Israeli children to become productive, contributing members of society...
Fuerst School in Beit Shemesh who were on a class field trip
Field trip
A field trip or excursion, known as school trip in the UK and school tour in Ireland, is a journey by a group of people to a place away from their normal environment...
, killing seven of them and injuring six others.
The attack
Field trip
A field trip or excursion, known as school trip in the UK and school tour in Ireland, is a journey by a group of people to a place away from their normal environment...
to the Jordan Valley and the Golan Heights. Part of the trip was to Naharayim
Naharayim
Naharayim is a site on the border between Israel and Jordan where an hydroelectric power-plant was established in 1930. The Yarmuk River flows into the Jordan River at Naharayim. The plant, established by Pinchas Rutenberg, produced much of the energy consumed in the British Mandate of Palestine...
, visiting the "Island of Peace", a joint Israeli-Jordanian tourist resort under Jordanian rule.
During the afternoon, the class reached the "Island of Peace" site, the girls got off the bus. As the girls were heading towards the observatory a Jordanian soldier stationed at the site, opened fire on the group with an M-16 rifle. The perpetrator managed to killed 7 girls and wounded five schoolgirls and a teacher others before his rifle jammed
Firearm malfunction
A firearm malfunction is the partial or complete failure of a firearm to operate as intended. Malfunctions range from temporary and relatively safe situations, such as a casing that didn't eject, to potentially dangerous occurrences that may permanently damage the gun and cause injury or death...
and the Jordanian soldiers seized him.
Fatalities
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The perpetrator
The perpetrator was Jordanian ArmyJordanian Armed Forces
The Jordanian Armed Forces , also referred to as The Arab Army , with all of it branches, is under direct control of the King of Jordan...
Corporal
Corporal
Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
Ahmed Daqamseh. The motive of the attack was not immediately apparent but Daqamseh later claimed that he attacked because the students had ridiculed him while he was praying.
Speaking on Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera is an independent broadcaster owned by the state of Qatar through the Qatar Media Corporation and headquartered in Doha, Qatar...
in May 2001, Daqamseh's mother said, "I am proud of my son, and I hold my head high. My son did a heroic deed and has pleased Allah and his own conscience. My son lifts my head and the head of the entire Arab and Islamic nation. I am proud of any Muslim who does what Ahmad did. I hope that I am not saying something wrong. When my son went to prison, they asked him: 'Ahmad, do you regret it?' He answered: 'I have no regrets.' He treated everyone to coffee, honored all the other prisoners, and said: The only thing that I am angry about is the gun, which did not work properly. Otherwise I would have killed all of the passengers on the bus."
Jordanian reaction
After Daqamseh was captured, the Jordanian army officially announced that Daqamseh was mentally ill.On March 16, 1997, A few days after the attack, King Hussein of Jordan personally apologized for the incident, travelling to Israel to visit and pay respects to the grieving families of the seven murdered girls during the traditional Jewish mourning ceremony known as shiva. King Hussein's visit to the parents of the victims was broadcast live in Israel and Jordan. During the visit, in which King Hussein stood alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu is the current Prime Minister of Israel. He serves also as the Chairman of the Likud Party, as a Knesset member, as the Health Minister of Israel, as the Pensioner Affairs Minister of Israel and as the Economic Strategy Minister of Israel.Netanyahu is the first and, to...
, he expressed an apology on behalf of the Kingdom of Jordan telling the parents, "Your daughter is like my daughter. Your loss is my loss." He added that they were all "members of one family" and that the shooting was "a crime that is a shame for all of us... I feel as if I have lost a child of my own. If there is any purpose in life it will be to make sure that all the children no longer suffer the way our generation did."
Afterwards King Hussein also visited the wounded schoolgirls in the hospital, and ordered to provide financial compensation to the families affected by the attack.
King Hussein's sincere act was an unusual act in the history of the Israeli-Arab conflict which deeply moved the mourning Israeli public and helped improve the relationship between the two countries after the attack. Nevertheless, various Jordanian individuals and groups criticized King Hussein's act for prostrating himself before Jews.
Trial and conviction
While the majority of Jordanians disapproved of the attacks and expressed sympathy for the victims, Daqamseh became a hero to Jordanians who opposed normalization with Israel. Jordanian police prevented a pilgrimage to his house and 200 Jordanian lawyers competed to represent him.In July 1997, a five-member Jordanian military tribunal
Military tribunal
A military tribunal is a kind of military court designed to try members of enemy forces during wartime, operating outside the scope of conventional criminal and civil proceedings. The judges are military officers and fulfill the role of jurors...
found Daqamseh guilty of killing the Israeli schoolgirls, sentencing him to life imprisonment at hard labor. Under Jordanian law, a life sentence is equivalent to 25 years in prison. He could have faced the death penalty but the tribunal spared him because he was determined to be mentally unstable.
Jordan’s justice minister's call for Daqamseh's release
On February 14, 2011, Jordan’s new justice minister Hussein Mjali joined dozens of protesters in demanding the early release of Daqamseh. Mjali, a long-time oppositionist, was appointed to the position as a result of the 2011 Jordanian protests2011 Jordanian protests
The 2011 Jordanian protests are a series of protests occurring in Jordan in 2011, which resulted in the firing of the cabinet ministers of the government.Food inflation and salaries were a cause for resentment in the country....
, part of the larger 2010–2011 Arab world protests against the region's established regimes.
Mjali previously served as the defense lawyer of Daqamseh in his 1997 trial. As an Arab nationalist
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism is a nationalist ideology celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language and literature of the Arabs, calling for rejuvenation and political union in the Arab world...
opposed to the 1994 Israel–Jordan peace treaty, Mjali views Daqamseh as a hero who should not be in prison. The Israeli Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that Mjali’s comments were received in Israel with "revulsion and shock." Israeli Embassy spokeswoman Merav Horsandi said it "is difficult for us to comprehend how there are people who support the release of a cold-blooded murderer of young children."
To allay Israeli concerns and anger regarding a possible early release, Jordan's foreign ministry issued a statement reassuring that Daqamseh would serve out his life sentence and that Mjali had just expressed his personal opinion.
External links
- Peres Prime Minister Netanyahu on Shooting in Naharayim - published at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- Jordanian Soldier Kills 7 Israeli Schoolgirls - published on the New York Times on March 14, 1997
- Hussein, on His Knees, Begs Forgiveness for Massacre; Jordanian King Visits Families of Slain Israeli Girls - published on the Washington Post on March 17, 1997