| Neve Shalom Synagogue massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part of theArab–Israeli conflict | |
 The Neve Shalom Synagogue | |
| Location | 41°01′36″N28°58′21″E / 41.02669°N 28.97242°E /41.02669; 28.97242 Neve Shalom Synagogue,Istanbul, Turkey |
| Date | September 6, 1986 |
| Deaths | 22 |
| Perpetrators | Abu Nidal Organization (suspected) |
| 2 | |
TheNeve Shalom Synagogue massacre happened on 6 September 1986 when a group of suspectedAbu Nidal Organization terrorists killed 22 worshipers inside theNeve Shalom Synagogue inIstanbul, Turkey.
TheNeve Shalom Synagogue was aSephardic synagogue in Istanbul'sBeyoglu district. It had been closed for repairs.Shabbat morning on 6 September 1986 marked its reopening.[1]
Around 9:17am of 6 September 1986 duringShabbat services,[1] when worshippers were reciting theShabbatparasha,[2] a pair off terrorists entered on the men's side of themechitza and opened fire on the crowd withmachine guns. They then doused the bodies of the dead and injured withgasoline, which they lit on fire.[1][3][4] A witness said that he heard the gunmen speakingArabic among themselves.[5]
The attackers took out "extremely powerful"grenades and blew themselves apart, killing themselves and disfiguring their bodies so badly that investigators were unable to identify who they were.[3][6] The grenades set off a fire in the building that lasted several hours.
The assailants gained access by posing as television cameramen assigned to cover the event for Israeli television. One of them spoke Hebrew to a guard.[1]
By the end of the massacre, 22 people had been killed. The victims ranged in age from 30 to 82.[3] Three of the people killed werePersian Jews, including an Iranian-bornrabbi.[7] Around two dozen were wounded, including four women hit by splinters in thewomen's gallery. The death toll would have been higher if aBar Mitzvah planned for that morning had not been cancelled.[1]
Two previously unknown Lebanese groups both separately claimed responsibility for the massacre, but the authenticity of the claims have been doubted.[1] ThePalestinianAbu Nidal Organization, although it never claimed responsibility, was widely suspected of perpetrating the attack, which bore the group's stamp.[1][3][6] Turkish police suspected the shooting was done by Abu Nidal but with the assistance of other groups, which it believed were likelyIran,Libya andSyria.[3]
All the victims were buried in a special section of theUlus Ashkenazi Jewish Cemetery.[8]
The Neve Shalom massacre was widely condemned in Turkey and internationally. TheCabinet of Turkey arranged aspecial session shortly after on Prime MinisterTurgut Özal's orders, who described the incident as "heinous" and "odious assault." Jewish synagogues and institutions were provided heavy security in fear of another attack.[1]President of the United StatesRonald Reagan wrote a letter to the Jewish community of Istanbul sharply condemning the massacre.[9]
Israeli Prime MinisterShimon Peres denounced the attack as "beastly" and vowed "not [to] rest until we cut off this murderous hand."[1]Simon Wiesenthal Center associate deanAbraham Cooper said the massacre was a "resurrect[ion of] the imagery and savagery ofthe Holocaust."[10]
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