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Matza restaurant suicide bombing

SOLVED2002Matza restaurant, near Grand Canyon shopping mall, Haifa, Israel3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Illustrative

On March 31, 2002, a suicide bomber detonated an explosive device inside the Matza restaurant in Haifa, Israel, located near the Grand Canyon shopping mall. The attack killed 16 people and injured more than 40 others. The restaurant has been described in reporting in differing ways — as "Arab-owned" in some accounts, and in others as "owned by Israeli Jews, but run by Palestinian citizens of Israel."

The military wing of Hamas claimed responsibility for the bombing. The group stated that the attack was carried out in retaliation for Israeli military raids on Palestinian cities and towns, specifically citing the situation in Ramallah, where the then President of the Palestinian National Authority, Yasser Arafat, was under siege by Israeli forces at the time.

A Hamas spokesman identified the suicide bomber as Shadi Tubasi, a 22-year-old Palestinian man. Tubasi reportedly came from a refugee camp in the area near Jenin, a location that had recently been the subject of an invasion by Israeli forces.

Key facts

Victims
On file
Date
2002
Location
Matza restaurant, near Grand Canyon shopping mall, Haifa, Israel
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2002-03-31

    A suicide bomber detonated an explosive device inside the Matza restaurant in Haifa, Israel, near the Grand Canyon shopping mall, killing 16 people and injuring over 40.

Best coverage

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People

  • Shadi Tubasi

    CHARGED

    Identified by a Hamas spokesman as the 22-year-old suicide bomber who carried out the attack; came from a refugee camp near Jenin. No formal legal proceedings are described in the source, as the perpetrator did not survive the attack.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Places

Matza restaurant, near Grand Canyon shopping mall, Haifa, Israel

32.7886, 35.0025

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On March 31, 2002, a Palestinian Hamas suicide bomber detonated explosives inside the Matza restaurant in Haifa, Israel, killing 16 people and injuring more than 40.
Where did the bombing happen?
Matza restaurant, near Grand Canyon shopping mall, Haifa, Israel.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.
More cases in Israel

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDICMatza restaurant suicide bombingWikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — The GuardianThe Guardian · 2026-07-07
  3. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — query.nytimes.comquery.nytimes.com · 2026-07-07

Record history

First published
JUL 07, 2026