By Alyssa A. Lappen
FrontPageMagazine.com | October 7, 2005
On June 5, 2002 a suicide bomber rammed his car into the rear end of Egged bus No. 830 to Tiberias at the Meggido Junction near Tel Aviv. The attack killed 17 people, one of whom remained unidentified for months. Despite the thousands of suicide and other terror attacks in Israel over the last 57 years, this was the first time a victim remained unidentified. Eden Productions film director David Ofek, photographer Ron Rotem and producer Elinor Kowarsky decided to pursue the story.
The result, No 17 is Anonymous, is a sympathetic, warm 2003 film showing the difficulties of Israeli life under the shadow of death. Its success hinges on the detective investigation undertaken by the filmmakers, who in the process of uncovering the identity of the 17th man, tell the everyday, tragic-comic stories of several Israelis affected directly or indirectly by the Meggido bombing.
Where the victims sat on the bus–and when they disembarked–determined the difference between life and death. The story gives names, faces, flesh and bones to the living and dead alike. The victims were all people. Their lives were torn apart by the blast. But the death of the 17th man was especially tragic: his face was completely burned away by the explosion; His charred remains had no recognizable features left whatever. Continue reading “Victims without Names”
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