Yelena Plagov

Jun 18, 2002 - Yelena Plagov, 42, of Jerusalem, was one of 19 people killed in a suicide bombing at the Patt junction in Egged bus no. 32A traveling from Gilo to the center of Jerusalem.

The terrorist boarded the bus at 7:50 A.M. at the stop in Beit Safafa, an Arab neighborhood opposite Gilo, and almost immediately detonated the large bomb which he carried in a bag stuffed with ball bearings. The blast destroyed the front half of the bus, packed with people on their way to work and schoolchildren. Of the 19 victims, 17 were residents of the Gilo neighborhood; 74 people were injured.

Yelena Plagov, a family doctor, was a new immigrant from Russia. Her husband, Andrei, arrived about 18 months ago to get established and Yelena followed with their three children six months ago. The couple found an apartment in Gilo. "Yelena began studying Hebrew at an ulpan in the center of town and traveled to class on the 32A bus each morning," said Andrei. Their eldest daughter was supposed to accompany her mother on Tuesday, but overslept.

Yelena Plagov was buried in Jerusalem. She is survived by her husband and their three children - Kasniya (19), Varsini (12) and Konstantin (6).