A Palestinian gunman entered a packed events hall in the central town of Hadera during a bat-mitzvah celebration, opening fire with an M-16 rifle on the celebrants. At least six Israelis were killed and 30 wounded, several seriously. The terrorist belonged to the Al-Aqsa Martyr Brigades of Yasser Arafat's Fatah group. Celebrations were reported in West Bank cities.
The gunman, wearing a military coat and running into the two-story Palace of David hall with an M-16 rifle, shot at the approximately 180 people as they were sitting and dancing shortly before 11 p.m. For several seconds after the shooting, people kept dancing, unaware of the shots due to the loud music. But soon after, as the terrorist changed magazines or experienced a mechanical problem with his gun, guests struck him with bottles, cans and blows, subduing him and dragging him from the hall. Police detectives arrived from a nearby station and shot him dead. An unexploded grenade was found near his body.
The victims were: Aharon Ben Yisrael-Alis, 32, of Raanana; Dina Binayav, 48, of Ashkelon; Edward Bakshayav, 48, and Antoli Bakshayav, 63, of Or Akiva; Avi Yazadi, 25, of Hadera; Boris Melihov, 56, of Sderot.