Assaf Tzur (Zolinger)

Assaf Tzur (Zolinger), 17, of Haifa, was one of 15 people killed in a suicide bombing of an Egged bus on Moriah Boulevard in the Carmel section of Haifa. The bus was traveling on the city's main Moriah Boulevard near the Carmel Center, on the way to Haifa University, when the blast turned the bus into a charred wreck and scattered bodies along the road. The suicide bomber, who had boarded the bus, had the bomb strapped to his body, laden with metal shrapnel in order to maximize the number of injuries. A total of 15 people were killed and 55 injured. Assaf Tzur was an eleventh grade student majoring in computers at the Hannah Szenes ORT School. He was traveling home with his girlfriend, Ortal. She kissed him goodby and got off the bus. Three stops later the bomb exploded and Assaf was killed. His friend Yanai related that Assaf liked to ride his skateboard and listen to music. "He was friends with everyone." School principal Rivka Shatz said, "Assaf was a charming boy, blond, the darling of the girls - and not only the girls." Assaf Tzur (Zolinger) was buried in Haifa.