Palestianians deplore use of teenager

NABLUS, West Bank - In this ragged city, which has dispatched many suicide bombers into Israel, Palestinian residents on Thursday delivered a rare rebuke to militant factions: Stop sending teenagers as human bombs.

Palestinians have strongly supported suicide attacks in the current Mideast fighting, and the backing is particularly strong in Nablus, one of the most radicalized and lawless West Bank cities.

But an aborted suicide attack Wednesday by Hussam Abdo, a 16-year-old Nablus resident, provoked a chorus of condemnations, led by his parents from their comfortable, middle-class apartment in one of the city's better neighborhoods.

"No one the age of my son should be used to commit such acts. This was a total shock to me," said Tamam Abdo, 50. Hussam is the youngest of her six children.

Previously, two 16-year-old Palestinians had carried out suicide attacks, including one from Nablus.

In January, a 17-year-old boy died when his bomb belt exploded prematurely, a week after his 15-year-old brother and a cousin were killed in clashes. This month, two 17-year-olds blew themselves up at the Israeli port of Ashdod, killing 10 Israelis.

But those bombings did little to stir Palestinian debate.

The capture of Hussam Abdo, detained wearing an 18-pound suicide vest at an Israeli army West Bank checkpoint, has proved different.

Soldiers near Nablus dived behind concrete barricades and pointed their rifles at the teenager. In a scene captured on videotape, troops sent a robot carrying scissors to the youth, who cut himself free of the bomb.

Israel said the teenager was sent to blow himself up among the soldiers, and al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade claimed it had dispatched the youth. But by Thursday the group, affiliated with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, withdrew the claim when it became apparent Palestinians were deeply angered over the use of a 16-year-old to attack Israelis.

The group subsequently said Israel had staged the incident to discredit the militants. The episode provoked a very public discussion on an issue that Palestinians normally prefer to debate privately.

In another development, 60 prominent Palestinians took out a half-page advertisement in a leading Palestinian newspaper, Al-Ayyam, saying that the Palestinians should not respond with violence to Israel's killing on Monday of Sheik Ahmed Yassin. The sheik was the leader of Hamas, the group responsible for the largest number of suicide bombings against Israel.

The advertisement represents a minority opinion, and it comes at a time when the Palestinian factions have been promising major retaliatory strikes. In Nablus, fresh graffiti along the city's main thoroughfare read, "The response is coming, no doubt."

Mrs. Abdo, in a view echoed by many others, made clear that she opposed only those suicide attacks carried out by under age bombers.

"Maybe if he is 20, then perhaps I could understand," she said of her own son. "At that age, they know what they are doing, they are fighting for their homeland."

She added: "We are living in a big jail, and some people are pushed to do this. We don't have any other means to defend ourselves."

The clusters of young men who gathered in the street outside the family home expressed the same sentiment. "I don't think anyone here opposes these attacks because of the situation the Israelis have put us in," said Muhammad Zeidal, 20, a university student. "But to use someone his age is very, very wrong."

The Abdo family said that three students who attended school with Hussam were arrested overnight. Israel said Hussam Abdo remained in custody, while authorities investigate who was responsible for sending him. Israeli authorities would not say whether he would be charged, although other, equally young Palestinians have been jailed on lesser charges. No Palestinian group has claimed responsibility for the attempted attack.

The Israelis detained an 11-year-old boy last week at the same checkpoint when they discovered a bomb hidden in a bag he was carrying. But Israel said he was unaware of the bomb, which had been given to him by an adult, and he was freed within hours.

"The latest case is different, because the boy knew what he was doing," said Maj. Sharon Feingold, a military spokeswoman.

At the Abdo home, Hussam's parents described him as an immature teenager manipulated by others.

Asked what she would do if her son returned, Mrs. Abdo said, "I would punish him." She waved her hand back and forth in front of her face to deliver a mock slapping.

During an interview with the New York Times, relatives presented Mrs. Abdo with a copy of the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot, with a large picture of Hussam on the front. She pulled the photo to her face and kissed it, then burst into tears.

Yediot Ahronot interviewed Hussam Abdo in custody, and he said other students made fun of him because he is quite short.

"They hurt me so much that I wanted to kill myself," he was quoted as saying.

Abdo said he wanted to go to paradise.

"A river of honey, a river of wine and 72 virgins. Since I have been studying Koran I know about the sweet life that waits there," the boy was quoted as saying.

"But when the soldiers stopped me, I didn't press the switch. I changed my mind. I didn't want to die anymore," he said. "I'm sorry for what I did."

When he spoke briefly to journalists on Wednesday after his arrest, he claimed he was 14. But documents provided by the family showed he turned 16 last December.

Hussam's father Muhammad, who owns a grocery store, said the family is well-off financially. He said his son spends hours on the family computer and likes to play soccer, but is an indifferent student.

Meanwhile, Hanan Ashrawi, a prominent Palestinian lawmaker who was among the signers of Thursday's newspaper advertisement, said there is growing support for peaceful protests among Palestinians. The contentious separation barrier that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's government is building in the West Bank has generated a wave of demonstrations, she said.

"We need to take the initiative with nonviolent resistance and not let Sharon control the agenda," she said. "I believe this is resonating among many more Palestinians now."

Palestinian militants have killed 942 Israelis in more than 31/2 years of violence. During the same period, 2,762 Palestinians have been killed.

There was speculation militant groups might be turning to children to fool the Israelis, who primarily watch for adult attackers. Children are easily recruited, because fighting Israel is almost a rite of passage in the occupied territories, analysts and residents said.

"This is a society where the only way to prove yourself is to fight against the Israeli occupation. There are no sports, no games. The only game now is the occupation and the fight," said Samar Awad, 38, a Nablus resident.

- Information from the New York Times and Associated Press was used in this report.

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