[Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: Sure sounds like a Bedouin girl who opted to die
as a "martyr" instead of being slaughtered by her brother for violating her
family's honor.]

Police: Teen Negev gunwoman sought to avenge Israel's Gaza op
By Yanir Yagana, Haaretz Correspondent Last update - 08:01 05/04/2009
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1076510.html

The Israel Police revealed late Saturday that they had found in the
notebooks of 15-year-old Basma Awad al-Nabari, the 9th grader who was killed
during a foiled shooting attack at a Border Police base in the Negev,
writing indicating that she had planned to avenge Israel's offensive in the
Gaza Strip.

Al-Nabari, a Bedouin girl from a nearby village, had opened fire on a Border
Police barracks at Shoket Junction in the south.

The girl arrived at Shoket Junction shortly before 2 P.M. and walked toward
the main gate of the base. When she tried to fire on the sentry from a
distance of a few meters, he turned the barrel away and escaped the bullets.
She then ran away and took cover, while the sentry and another officer who
had arrived at the scene tried to persuade her to turn herself in.
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When the brief negotiation failed, another gun battle ensued, at the end of
which the officer shot the attacker dead.

According to investigators, police found letters among the attacker's books
in which she had written that she wanted to become a Shahid, or martyr, and
that the aim of the shooting was to avenge the offenses committed by
Israel's security establishment against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip
and the West Bank.

Investigators were looking to determine whether the girl acted alone, or
whether some organization stood behind the incident, which would have
provided training, support and equipment.

The police findings contradicted the claims of Al-Nabari's family, who
argued that the girl had been shot for no reason. Ali al-Nabari, the
attacker's cousin, said following the incident that "it couldn't be. The
police is lying and exaggerating. Maybe she was there to make a complaint
and got mixed-up."

"The person manning the base gate thinks that anyone wearing a kaffiyeh is a
terrorist," the cousin continued. "His friends shot her for no reason. She
is involved in a program for exceptional students and active in social
projects. It isn't logical that someone could have influenced her. She is in
school from the morning until the afternoon and she comes straight home from
there. There is no internet, or anything else. Maybe the police made up the
gun."

Other family members also had trouble believing the reports. "This is a
false claim by the police," said a family member who asked to remain
anonymous. "They are looking to cover up their actions. This could not have
been a terror attack."

"This was a special and kind child," added another family member. "Why
didn't they show the gun on television? They only filmed her bag. They
killed her accidentally and we intend to fight this to the end. We will hire
lawyers and petition the courts until everyone knows the truth."

Police Commissioner David Cohen held a makeshift press conference at the
scene of the attack, in which he urged the public to remain alert.

"This is the third time in a month someone attempts policemen's lives,"
Cohen said. "In this case as well, police reacted swiftly and efficiently.
I'm calling on the public to be alert and inform police about every
suspicious occurrence."