'Pride' of suicide attacker's mother

BBC ^ | 6/18/02 | Orla Guerin

[MVV]

Tuesday, 18 June, 2002, 10:15 GMT 11:15 UK

'Pride' of suicide attacker's mother

Naima: "This is the best day of my life"

By Orla Guerin BBC Middle East correspondent

In Gaza, the mother of a Palestinian suicide attacker who killed two Israelis before being shot dead has spoken of her feelings about her son's actions.

A video released by Hamas shows a proud mother taking up arms beside her favourite son.

We believe our sons go to heaven when they are martyred... when [Jewish] sons die they go to hell

Naima al-Obeid

First a warm embrace, then a loving kiss.

Naima al-Obeid was saying goodbye to her 23-year-old Mahmoud, a college student on his way to carry out a suicide attack.

"God willing you will succeed," she says.

"May every bullet hit its target, and may God give you martyrdom. This is the best day of my life."

Mahmoud says: "Thank you for raising me."

Naima got her wish.

Mahmoud was shot dead attacking the Jewish settlement of Dugit in the Gaza Strip on Saturday.

Deaths celebrated

Two Israeli soldiers were killed in the ambush.

Their deaths are being celebrated near Mahmoud's home.

Obeid killed two Israelis before being shot dead

We found crowds coming to the mourning tent - and not just because of him.

People here aren't just remembering Mahmoud - they are honouring his mother.

She has become a heroine, being talked about on the streets, praised in the local papers.

Some Palestinians are taking a great deal of pride in a mother who saw her son go to kill and die without shedding a tear.

They are already saying she will inspire other women to do the same.

Heaven and hell

In her home, in Gaza, she showed me pictures of the son she calls "my heart".

She had no sympathy for the dead Israelis, no regrets over the loss of her own son.

"Nobody wants their son to be killed. I always wanted him to have a good life.

"But our land is occupied by the Israelis. We're sacrificing our sons to get our freedom," she told me.

I asked her if it mattered whether her son killed women and children.

"The women and children are also Jews," she said, "They're all the same for me.

"And I want to tell Jewish mothers - take your children and run from here because you will never be safe. We believe our sons go to heaven when they are martyred. When your sons die they go to hell."

Naima is surrounded by well-wishers, no one asking why she gave her son a licence to kill.

She has nine more children, whom, she says, all have a duty to fight the Israeli occupation.

[rageaholic]

Some Palestinians are taking a great deal of pride in a mother who saw her son go to kill and die without shedding a tear.

Subhuman beast as islamic mother figure. I am not surprised. Meanwhile many Euroweenies continue to champion their cause, this surprises me.

[AmericanInTokyo]

It might take a targeted, covert effort such as you suggest. Dangling a few carrots all while hitting mercilessly with sticks after find the best pressure points.

We are kind of tripping around the dark, tripping over our _____s if you ask me, diplomatically and politically speaking.

[rageaholic]

We are kind of tripping around the dark, tripping over our _____s

The Government overvalues relations with the Saudi Royals. Its all about their oil. What the Govt seems to forget is the Saudis need our money more than we need their oil. If we got tough with them, they'd blink first.

[Savage Beast]

"We believe our sons go to heaven when they are martyred. When your sons die they go to hell."

Naima's in for a hell of a surprise.

"may God give you martyrdom"

In the world of Islam, Dr. Kevorkian's time has come.

Judging from Naima and her ambitions, the entire Islamic World is destinied to retire the Darwin Award Trophy.

"This is the best day of my life."

Yes. You people are having a blast.

Keep dishing out this kind of crap, and the rest of the world's gonna give you fools a hell of a lot more martyrdom than you've asked for.

The patience of the people of the world is growing thin--very thin.

[DBtoo]

The Palestinians don't want to go to Syria, Jordon or anywhere else, and the Jordanians and Syrians don't want them either. The Palestinians want to stay in Israel so they can continue killing Jews. That is their sole purpose in life.

[DBtoo]

I don't think killing their families will stop them; as long as they exist, I don't think ANYTHING will stop them!!

[INSENSITIVE GUY]

She acts proud for the media but is really thinking of a now cheaper monthly food bill and $25,000.

[Dajjal]

A note on standard Muslim theology:

When someone dies, the soul is held in abeyance until the Last Day, the Day of Judgment, when the good and evil acts of each man and woman who has ever lived are made known to all, and weighed, to determine whether the individual will enter Paradise of be confined to Hell.

But ... if someone dies a martyr, then there is no waiting. His soul immediately enters Paradise to enjoy the 100 virgins (70 maidens and 30 beautiful boys).

[MVV]

FYI!

[floriduh voter]

Someone please explain to me why we always are told who the "homocide bomber" is but we never know the names of the victims. If our news media would wise up, they'd quit aiding and abetting the bombers by telling us their name and showing us their personal effects and even their bedrooms. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.

I'd rather know the names of the victims that I CARE about, not any hamas or hezbullah nut jobs. So mom's little shack was probably paid off and she has a little spending money now. STOP GIVING THE BOMBERS AND THEIR FAMILIES PUBLICITY, NEWS MEDIA! IT'S HELPING THEIR CAUSE...