Mom: Shame on Hamas!

[GabysPoppy]

The mother of a would-be Palestinian boy bomber said yesterday he was too young to die, as the militants found themselves under fire for sending kids on suicide missions.
"If he were older than 18 years old, then maybe," Hussam Abdu's mother, Tamam, said. "Maybe I would even encourage him. But sending this boy - it is not acceptable."

Abdu's uncle, Halil Abdu, said militants exploited the 16-year-old by giving him $22 and promising him 72 virgins in paradise if he blew up Israeli soldiers.

"If someone gives a boy something like this, I don't believe he has any sense at all," he said. "He is a crazy person. How can you give a boy that age an explosive belt?"

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/wn_report/story/177425p-154424c.html

It's nice to know that this particular mother would encourage her son two years from now to strap on an explosive belt. Somebody please explain this thinking to me, I must be a little slow. I think the title of this article is a bit wrong. It should read "Shame on this mother"

[GabysPoppy]

1. More comments

"We have to carry out serious attacks," said Sadia Abdel Rahman, 42. "This is not a children's game. This is an embarrassment."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A25291-2004Mar25.html

[GabysPoppy]

2. Still more on this story

Nablus teenage bomber sparks concern over rights of minors in intifada

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1515&ncid=1515&e=7&u=/afp/20040325/wl_mideast_afp/mideast_unrest_rights_children_040325152809

The face of the would-be juvenile suicide bomber, aired on television networks worldwide, sent greater than usual shockwaves through public opinion, and the incident was abundantly condemned by Israeli authorities.

The same pictures were glaringly absent from the Palestinian press, and the Palestinian Authority (news - web sites) did not issue any condemnation of the incident.

(The "unbiased" Palestinian press)

Hamas official Mahmud Zahar had said in January after his movement sent its first fenale suicide bomber that "Hamas will not renounce the path of jihad or resistance and freedom, even at the cost of sacrificing our sons and our wives."

(sure, who gives a shit who dies, yet these brave(?) Hamas militants have no problem using kids as human shields.)

Abdo's uncle, Khalil Abdo, told AFP Thursday he "firmly condemned all those who make kids the age of Hossam carry suicide belts ... This isn't a patriotic action at all."
Reacting to reports in the Israeli press, he added that "Hossam was neither mentally retarded nor naive".

(somebody forgot to tell the boy's uncle to get with the program. Bravo to him for speaking the truth)

Based on the statistics, I don't think we can say it's a growing phenomenon," said Noam Hoffstater, from the Israeli rights watchdog B'Tselem.

(I would think that just ONE incident like this would be of concern to B'Tselem. Tells you something about their objectivity.)

[GabysPoppy]

5. More from the uncle

If I find out who sent him on this mission, I will not hesitate to fire two bullets at his head," said Abdu's uncle, Abu Muhammad. "I don't even mind spending the rest of my life in prison. Those who did this are criminals."

He said he strongly condemns the recruiting of Abdu as a suicide bomber, noting that no one from the family had ever been involved in terrorism.

"We were completely surprised to hear about this incident," he said. "We condemn those who sent the boy to blow himself up. He was an innocent and quiet boy. He was a short, naive boy who had been struck in the head when he was a child and has been suffering from an illness since then. We always kept an eye on him because we knew he was a small child. Although he's 16, he thinks like a 10-year-old."

Abu Muhammad said those who sent his nephew on the suicide mission had manipulated him by promising him 72 virgins in heaven and NIS 100.

"They deceived him," he said. "He's a boy who doesn't know good from bad."

The boy's father, Bilal, expressed his fear that the IDF would now target the family.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1080188586900

I think the uncle and the boy's father have more to fear from Arafat and his thugs than the IDF these days.

[drdon326]

10. Really.

"Abu Muhammad said those who sent his nephew on the suicide mission had manipulated him by promising him 72 virgins in heaven and NIS 100."

I guarantee you the 16 yo didn't give a rats ass about the money
but those 72 virgins was a major woody inducer.

[chickflick]

6. What happened a couple of weeks ago to the actual 12 year old boy

who was paid to move a bag containing explosives (unbeknown-st to the boy) and was caught by Israeli police?

I believe the IDF sent the boy back to live with the thugs who put him in danger. That's child abuse.

The US wouldn't send a boy back to be abused and exploited by terrorist thugs. Elian Gonzalez isn't abused in Cuba--he's a symbolic hero. But the 12 year old boy caught and returned to his lousy home a week or two ago will be teased and ridiculed.

[tinnypriv]

3. His sister

Thought it was great he was going to blow himself up. She wants to blow herself up as well. She looks pretty young.

That isn't in this article.

[Vladimir]

4. I saw an interview with her last night

And she said that she though he was too young, but that she would have willingly taken his place...

V

[Rhiannon12866]

7. I guess you have to understand this story in context

Things are much different in that part of the world, but they shouldn't be. Yes, this mother, here, would be brought up on child-abuse charges, and well she should be. Does she have children to spare, or what?! It makes my blood run cold to keep hearing of children being dragged into this horrible mess. They may be persuaded to feel strongly, but I really doubt that they truly get it. What we need, as I keep saying, is an administration that forces both sides to take a hard and sincere look at the "road map," but, unfortunately, that's not going to happen for the foreseeable future.

[mobuto]

8. The kid was suicidal

when the IDF interviewed him, he said he wanted to commit suicide because he was bullied in school. That Hamas or anybody else would help him commit suicide goes so far beyond the realm of civilized activity it really boggles the mind.

[Rhiannon12866]

9. I agree

The child obviously needed help and definitely not of the kind that would help him commit suicide. These people are sick, but we already knew that. He needs psychological help, which I am hoping he now gets, but I suspect many children in this beleaguered region desperately need such help.