16th Victim of Yerushalayim Sbarro Attack Dies After 22 Years in Coma

A woman who was critically wounded in a deadly Palestinian terror attack and who remained in a vegetative state for 22 years succumbed to her injuries at Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv on Wednesday night, hospital authorities said.

Mrs. Chana Tova Chaya Nachenberg, Hy”d, was 31 years old on the day a Palestinian suicide bomber killed 15 civilians, including seven children, and wounded over 100 others at the Sbarro pizzeria in Yerushalayim, on August 9, 2001. She thus became the 16th fatal victim of the bombing, among the deadliest during the Second Intifada.

The suicide bombing was carried out by a Hamas terrorist, Izz al-Din Shuheil al-Masri.

Eight children were among those killed in the attack on the family dining establishment. Five victims were members of the same family.

The 22-year-old terrorist came from the village of Aqaba near Jenin. He was assisted by Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi, a Jordanian journalist and, at the time, a student at Bir Zeit University.

The planner of the attack, Muhammad Dagles Wil Muhammad, was sentenced to 15 life sentences. He was subsequently released under a prisoner exchange agreement, in which many Palestinian prisoners were exchanged for one Israeli, Gilad Shalit. Al-Tamimi was also part of the swap, after which she returned to Jordan.

Al-Tamimi is listed as a “most wanted terrorist” by the FBI, who described her as “dangerous and potentially armed.” She currently hosts a program on a Hamas-affiliated media channel. Jordan repeatedly refused to extradite her. There is a bounty of up to $5 million on her head, the highest on a wanted female terrorist.