Arafat in the crossfire as Israel goes for kill

THEY had gathered to share the traditional Passover Seder meal. In the festive dining hall of the Park Hotel in the seaside resort of Netanya, around 250 Israelis chatted and prepared to be seated for dinner. Retired civil servants and court officials mingled with foreign Jews who were visiting Israel for the holidays.

Many were there only because the Park had offered a better deal than a neighbouring hotel at the last minute. Wednesday night’s dinner was to have been the centrepiece of a four-day break for one group of 12 Israeli pensioners.

The bomber, a 25-year-old Palestinian, arrived in a long black overcoat, wearing a long-haired wig, and moved to the centre of the room. Dispatched by Hamas, a movement which purports to “act in the name of religion”, he made as if to search for a seat, before detonating his explosive. The impact, in the confines of a closed room, was devastating.

With a blast on such a scale, the aftershock bounces off the walls, sending out shrapnel and debris that is enough to kill. Of the 120 wounded, many were seriously hurt; the original death toll of 16 had soon crept up to 21. By Thursday evening forensic experts had been able to identify only 14 of the dead.