Massacre 31 July 2001

Nablus Massacre 2001: Apache Strike Kills Mansour, Salim, Two Boys

On the afternoon of Tuesday, 31 July 2001, an Israeli Apache helicopter fired two missiles at the office of the “Palestinian Center for Studies and Media” in a residential building in central Nablus. Eight Palestinians were killed: the Hamas leaders Jamal Mansour and Jamal Salim, two journalists who were interviewing them, the centre’s manager, Mansour’s companion, and two young brothers aged five and eight. [1] [2]

The occupation’s prime minister, Ariel Sharon, called the crime “one of our most important successes.” [3] It is one of the Zionist massacres against the Palestinian people.

The 2001 Nablus massacre at a glance

Item	Details
Date	Tuesday, 31 July 2001, around 1:40 p.m. [1] [2]
Place	The office of the “Palestinian Center for Studies and Media” in a residential building in central Nablus [1]
Perpetrator	The occupation army, with a US-made Apache helicopter that fired two missiles [1] [2]
Killed	8, among them Jamal Mansour, Jamal Salim, two journalists and two young brothers [1] [2]
Wounded	3 seriously, according to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights [1]
Occupation’s position	Sharon called it “one of our most important successes” [3]

The massacre: two missiles on a media centre

At about 1:40 p.m., Jamal Mansour and Jamal Salim were at the office of the “Palestinian Center for Studies and Media,” run by Mansour, on the second floor of a residential building in central Nablus. The journalists Muhammad al-Bishawi and Othman Qatanani were interviewing them. [1]

A US-made Apache helicopter fired two missiles at the office, destroying it completely and damaging the whole building. All eight died of shrapnel wounds across their bodies. [1] [2]

Among the dead were the brothers Bilal and Ashraf Abu Khader, from al-Judayda near Jenin, who were visiting their uncle in Nablus. [1] Three people were seriously wounded, among them a woman passing by the building. [1]

The eight killed

Name	Age	Role
Jamal Abd al-Rahman Muhammad Mansour	41	Hamas political leader, Balata camp
Jamal Salim Damouni (Jamal Salim)	42	Hamas political leader, Ein Beit al-Ma camp
Muhammad Abd al-Karim al-Bishawi	28	Journalist at An-Najah University press office, Balata camp
Othman Abd al-Qadir Qatanani	25	Journalist at the Nablus press office, Askar camp
Omar Mansour Muhammad Mansour	28	Jamal Mansour’s companion and cousin, Balata camp
Fahim Ibrahim Mustafa Dawabsheh	32	Centre manager, Nablus
Bilal Abd al-Mun’im Khalil Abu Khader	8	Child from al-Judayda near Jenin
Ashraf Abd al-Mun’im Khalil Abu Khader	5	Child, Bilal’s brother

Ages are as given by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights; Al Mezan gives some ages differing by one year. [1] [2]

Jamal Mansour and Jamal Salim

Jamal Mansour and Jamal Salim were Hamas political leaders in Nablus. [1] [2] Jamal Salim was born in 1958 in Ein Beit al-Ma camp, to a family driven from the coastal village of al-Damun in 1948. The occupation arrested him eight times between 1975 and 1995 and deported him to Marj al-Zuhur in southern Lebanon in 1992. He wrote on refugee rights, rejecting compensation as a substitute for the right of return. [4]

Reactions

Hundreds of Palestinians gathered outside the targeted office, and clashes and exchanges of fire broke out. The US State Department criticized the attack as “highly provocative,” while Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak wrote to President George W. Bush asking for US intervention. [3]

Al Mezan described assassinations and extrajudicial killings as “organized state terror,” called for those who ordered and carried them out to be pursued, and demanded immediate international protection for Palestinian civilians. [2]

The day before: the Wadi al-Far’a explosion

The Nablus massacre came one day after another crime. At about 1:25 a.m. on Monday, 30 July 2001, a heavy explosion tore through a car-parts shop in Wadi al-Far’a, killing six Palestinians and seriously wounding a seventh. [1]

Occupation helicopters were flying over the area and its tanks were moving near the “Allon Moreh” settlement. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights suspected the explosion was planned and carried out by occupation forces, while Israeli officials said three of the dead were “wanted.” [1]

The six killed were Maher Ahmad Abdullah Jawabra (25), Hikmat Abd al-Karim Hammad Abu al-Habal (28), Abd al-Rahman Eshteiwi Hasan Mubarak (25), Amin Muhammad Hafez Balatiya (25), Muhammad Taye’ Qasem Balatiya (19) and Munir Mustafa Saleh Balatiya (24). [1]

Conclusion

In two consecutive days the occupation killed fourteen Palestinians in the Nablus area. In the second massacre the Apache’s missiles made no distinction between a political leader, the journalist who had come to interview him, and two children who had come to visit their uncle. The occupation’s leaders made no secret of their pride: Sharon called it a “success.”

Frequently asked questions about the 2001 Nablus massacre

When did the 2001 Nablus massacre take place?

On the afternoon of Tuesday, 31 July 2001, at about 1:40.

How many people were killed in the 2001 Nablus massacre?

Eight, among them Jamal Mansour and Jamal Salim, the journalists Muhammad al-Bishawi and Othman Qatanani, and the children Bilal and Ashraf Abu Khader.

What did the helicopter target?

The office of the “Palestinian Center for Studies and Media” on the second floor of a residential building in central Nablus.

Who were the two children killed?

The brothers Bilal (8) and Ashraf (5) Abu Khader, from al-Judayda near Jenin, who were visiting their uncle.

What happened in Wadi al-Far’a the day before?

An explosion tore through a car-parts shop before dawn on 30 July 2001, killing six Palestinians; occupation forces are suspected of carrying it out.

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