Ofir Rahum
Encyclopedia
The murder of Ofir Rahum was a shooting attack which occurred on January 17, 2001, in which Palestinian militants killed 16-year-old Israeli high school student Ofir Rahum
.
Rahum was lured over the Internet
by Mona Jaud Awana, a 24 year-old Palestinian PLA Collaborator from Bir Nabala
, who managed to seduce Rahum through an online chat
by pretending to be a young American tourist called Sally and invited him to meet her in Jerusalem for a seemingly romantic meeting. Mona managed to drive him to a remote area in the outskirts of Ramallah
where a Palestinian terrorist cell showed up and shot Rahum at close range.
after a massive police and army operation. She confessed to being involved in the murder. Mona confessed to her part in murdering Ofir Rahum along with two senior Ramallah-area Fatah Tanzim operatives - Hassan Alkadi and Abdul Fatah Doleh from Beituniya.
Israel's Permanent Representative to the United Nations
wrote a letter addressed to the Secretary-General trying to draw his attentions to the "recent acts of Palestinian terrorism directed against Israeli civilians".
Mona Awana was convicted in February 2003 for murdering Rahum and was given a life sentence.
On April 30, 2001, seven Palestinian militants, one of them a participant in Rahum's murder, were killed in an explosion. Palestinians claimed that Israel was responsible, while the IDF refused to admit involvement.
between Israel and Hamas. Awana is now residing in exile in Turkey
.
Ofir Rahum
The murder of Ofir Rahum was a shooting attack which occurred on January 17, 2001, in which Palestinian militants killed 16-year-old Israeli high school student Ofir Rahum....
.
Rahum was lured over the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
by Mona Jaud Awana, a 24 year-old Palestinian PLA Collaborator from Bir Nabala
Bir Nabala
Bir Nabala is a Palestinian town in the West Bank located eight kilometers northeast of Jerusalem. In mid-year 2006, it had an estimated population of 6,100 residents...
, who managed to seduce Rahum through an online chat
Online chat
Online chat may refer to any kind of communication over the Internet, that offers an instantaneous transmission of text-based messages from sender to receiver, hence the delay for visual access to the sent message shall not hamper the flow of communications in any of the directions...
by pretending to be a young American tourist called Sally and invited him to meet her in Jerusalem for a seemingly romantic meeting. Mona managed to drive him to a remote area in the outskirts of Ramallah
Ramallah
Ramallah is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank located 10 kilometers north of Jerusalem, adjacent to al-Bireh. It currently serves as the de facto administrative capital of the Palestinian National Authority...
where a Palestinian terrorist cell showed up and shot Rahum at close range.
Background
Mona Awana, who was later arrested by the Israeli police, said she decided the day the Palestinians carried out the lynching of two Israelis soldiers in Ramallah in late 2000 to abduct an Israeli and murder him. Mona had been present at the Ramallah lynching, and said she was "excited" by what she saw. Soon after, Mona started to make contact with Israelis on the Internet. Awana contacted several Israeli teenagers via chat rooms. Then she targeted Rahum with whom she pretended to start an online romance. In conversations over several months Mona pressed for one thing — a meeting in Jerusalem. When Rahum suggested a venue closer to his home, she said she couldn't get a car. When he said his parents would object, she promised to get him back by 5. That vow and a few sexual innuendos persuaded the boy. "You don't know how much I am waiting for Wednesday," Mona wrote him two days before. When he came to meet her, she convinced him to escort her to Ramallah.The murder
Awana then drove him toward Ramallah. Somewhere on the way, according to Palestinian eye-witnesses interviewed by a French news agency, at a prearranged location, she bolted from the car, another vehicle drove up and three Palestinian gunmen inside shot Ofir more than 15 times. One terrorist drove off with Ofir's body and dumped it, while the others fled in the second vehicle.Aftermath
The 25-year-old woman, Amana Jawad, was arrested in Bir NabalaBir Nabala
Bir Nabala is a Palestinian town in the West Bank located eight kilometers northeast of Jerusalem. In mid-year 2006, it had an estimated population of 6,100 residents...
after a massive police and army operation. She confessed to being involved in the murder. Mona confessed to her part in murdering Ofir Rahum along with two senior Ramallah-area Fatah Tanzim operatives - Hassan Alkadi and Abdul Fatah Doleh from Beituniya.
Israel's Permanent Representative to the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
wrote a letter addressed to the Secretary-General trying to draw his attentions to the "recent acts of Palestinian terrorism directed against Israeli civilians".
Mona Awana was convicted in February 2003 for murdering Rahum and was given a life sentence.
On April 30, 2001, seven Palestinian militants, one of them a participant in Rahum's murder, were killed in an explosion. Palestinians claimed that Israel was responsible, while the IDF refused to admit involvement.
Release of Assailant
On 18 October 2011 Mona Jaud Awana, whom was originally sentenced to 1 life sentence, was released to Gaza as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchangeGilad Shalit prisoner exchange
The Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange followed an agreement between Israel and Hamas to release Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for 1,027 prisoners – mainly Palestinians and Arab-Israelis, though among the prisoners released there was also a Ukrainian prisoner, a Jordanian prisoner, and a...
between Israel and Hamas. Awana is now residing in exile in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
.
External links
- Israel's 'First Internet Murder' - published on WiredWired (magazine)Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...
on January 19, 2001 - Woman arrested after Israeli youth lured to online death - published on The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
on January 20, 2001 - Israeli boy killed after love lure on internet - published on The Daily TelegraphThe Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
on January 19, 2001 - Israelis Grieve as Youth Who Was Lured to His Death on the Internet Is Buried - published on The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
on January 20, 2001 - Another Tack: Ceremony or no ceremony - published on The Jerusalem PostThe Jerusalem PostThe Jerusalem Post is an Israeli daily English-language broadsheet newspaper, founded on December 1, 1932 by Gershon Agron as The Palestine Post. The daily readership numbers do not approach those of the major Hebrew newspapers....
on April 24, 2008