Forensic investigation of suicide bombings

Abstract

Since the late 1980s and throughout the early 2000s, Palestinian Muslim fundamentalist groups have chosen suicide terrorism as a means of expressing their dissent against Israel, taking the lives of hundreds of civilians, military personnel, and perpetrators. The first intifada (uprising), comprised a series of violent incidents between the years 1987 and 1993, when the Oslo accords were signed and the Palestinian National Authority was established. This period, also known as the War of Rocks, was characterized by few suicide attacks. The majority of suicide bombings occurred later, from 1993 onwards. In the 22 suicide terrorist bombings that took place in Israel between the years 1994 and 1998, 141 victims and 23 perpetrators were killed. The second wave of suicide terror, known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, took place between 2000 and 2006. In 87 suicide bombings, the lives of 581 victims and 91 perpetrators were taken. In 58 other incidents, 65 perpetrators perished.1 A majority of the victims and all the perpetrators have been examined at the National Centre of Forensic Medicine, the only forensic medical facility in Israel. © 2009 Springer New York.