Washington, January 19, 2006 - In response to today's suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, Rabbi David Saperstein, Director of the Religious Action Center, issued the following statement:
We fervently condemn today's reprehensible terrorist attack, once again targeting innocent civilians engaging in their daily business. We send our heartfelt sympathies to those wounded and their families, and pray for a refuah shleimah, a full and speedy recovery of body and spirit.
After several months of relatively low levels of violence, the perpetrators of such terrorist attacks have chosen the eve of elections for the Palestinian Authority and the beginning of the Israeli election season, in an effort to undermine moderates in both communities and to undercut efforts at peace. Israelis and Palestinians best defy extremists by acting yet more forcefully to stop terrorism, and we hope that the varied Palestinian political parties will affirm their commitment to do so, and by supporting continued efforts to bring about a peaceful resolution of differences.