Cave of the Patriarchs massacre

Cave of the Patriarchs massacre
Cave of the Patriarchs in 2009
Date	February 25, 1994 (1994-02-25)
Target	Muslim worshippers
Attack type	Jewish terrorism, Mass murder
Weapons	IMI Galil
Deaths	30 (including the perpetrator)
Non-fatal injuries	125

The Cave of the Patriarchs massacre, also known as the Ibrahimi Mosque massacre or Hebron massacre, was a shooting massacre carried out by American-Israeli Baruch Goldstein, also a member of the far-right Israeli Kach movement. On February 25, 1994, Goldstein opened fire on a large number of Palestinian Muslims who had gathered to pray inside the Ibrahimi Mosque at the Cave of the Patriarchs compound in Hebron, West Bank. It took place on February 25, 1994, during the overlapping religious holidays of both Jewish Purim and Muslim Ramadan. The attack left 29 people dead, several as young as twelve, and 125 wounded. Goldstein was overpowered, disarmed and then beaten to death by survivors.

The massacre immediately set off mass Palestinian protests throughout the West Bank, and during the ensuing clashes a further 20 to 26 Palestinians were killed, and 120 injured in confrontations with the IDF, while 9 Jews were killed.

Goldstein was widely denounced in Israel and by communities in the Jewish diaspora, with many attributing his act to insanity. Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin condemned the attack, describing Goldstein as a "degenerate murderer", "a shame on Zionism and an embarrassment to Judaism". Some Jewish settlers in Hebron lauded him as a hero and viewed his attack as a preemptive strike and his and subsequent death as an act of martyrdom. Following statements in support of Goldstein's actions, Kach movement was banned by the Israeli cabinet.

Six weeks later, Hamas carried out two suicide bombings against Israeli citizens, in what it called retaliation.