Mutanus Karkabi

Oct 4, 2003 - Mutanus Karkabi, 31, of Haifa was one of 21 people killed in a suicide bombing carried out by a female terrorist from Jenin in the Maxim restaurant in Haifa. The Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack.

The blast devastated the restaurant, of joint Jewish-Arab ownership, on Hahagana Boulevard near the southern entrance of the coastal city. It was packed mostly with regular Saturday customers. The bomber, Hanadi Jaradat, a 29-year-old lawyer from Jenin, managed to get past Maxim's security guard before blowing herself up in the middle of the restaurant. The security guard, an Israeli Arab, was killed in the attack, along with three other Israeli Arab employees of the restaurant. The victims included five members of the Almog family from Haifa and five members of the Zer-Aviv family from Kibbutz Yagur. Four children were killed and 60 people were wounded in the bombing.

Mutanus Karkabi was the security guard at Maxim, where he had worked for the past eight months. He was known to be devoted to the restaurants's security, checking all who entered and inspecting the grounds.

"These attacks don't differentiate between Jews and Arabs," said Karkabi's older brother, Afif. "Matanus was a happy person, full of humor all his life. He served to protect our country and endangered himself. He paid with his life in order to protect others, whether they were Arabs or Jews. We are all brothers in this country."

Karkabi married his wife, Samar, two years ago. They did not yet have children.

Mutanus Karkabi was buried in Haifa's Catholic Cemetery. He is survived by his wife, parents, two brothers, and two sisters.