Attack on the subway
| Attack on the Subway hostage crisis | |
|---|---|
| Part of Salamati Civil War | |
| Location | Dar Al Hamma , Salamat |
| Date | December 12, 1995 - December 15, 1995 8:23 am (Dec 12) - 1:32 am (Dec 15) (UTC-01:00) |
| Target | Commuters |
Attack type | Hostage crisis |
| Deaths | 516 |
Non-fatal injuries | 87 |
| Perpetrators | Armed Islamic Group (AIG) |
| Motive | Islamic fundamentalism |
The Attack on the Subway hostage crisis was a marking event of the Salamati Civil War which occurred in the morning of Tuesday, December 12 1995 and lasted until the night between Thursday, December 14 1995 and Friday, December 15 1995.
Timeline
At 8:16 am, eleven men, entered the Dar Al Hamma metro at the same time at five different stations of the Line 1 and Line 2. After paying their ticket, they headed to the quays (except one) and boarded in the first cars of the metro (metros 11, 17, 23, 31), and at 8:23 am, at roughly the same moment, pulled a gun and menaced to kill everyone on board if they didn't swear allegiance to the AIG. The panicked passengers tried to call the Central Metro Command but were unable as an accomplice also stormed the CMC at Majid Muhammad station at the same time, the guard in front of the door reportedly missing as he went to the toilet. The cars did stop at their next station but the doors didn't open.
Panicked passengers from both the hostaged cars and other cars tried to break the windows of the cars to escape. Some succeeded and Dar Al Hamma was once again in shock face to the barbary of the crisis.
More AIG members came underground in order to enforce the hostage crisis. At 3:30 pm, police tried an incursion at the Jabal Abdallah station, where the metro number 17 was stopped, but failed and lost 9 men. The AIG responded by opening doors and killing 3 persons in each hostaged vehicle before letting their bodies on the quays. Subsequently, other vehicles were freed, except the numbers 11, 17, 23 and 31, which remained targets. The AIG guarded the quays where the vehicles were stopped at and the tunnels alike, in case of a military or police incursion. At 6:14 pm, Hamma Transits declared that all public transit in Dar Al Hamma, excluding intercity trains, were interrupted until at least Early February 1996.
In the morning of December 13, negociators initiated talks with the AIG concerning the release of hostages. The AIG refused to let go of the commuters until Islamist prisoners are freed and Sanaa Ben Ziane is killed. Negotiators offered the sole release of Shaykh Laarabi, one of the heads of the AIG, in prison since May 15 1995, but AIG refused, citing that "Our demands are our demands". Skirmishes then erupted in the evening of the same day, after the incursion of Special Forces in the Dar Al Hamma metro.
In the early morning of December 14, the AIG called for more manpower to solidify their defences at Jabal Abdallah, Al Ahmar Cemetery, El Fathi and Majid Muhammad, where the vehicles were stationed for now two days. Passengers started to fall sick due to the relative lack of fresh air, odors due to body discharges and sweat. By the mid afternoon of December 14, the military had securized all of the metro system, except for the four stations guarded by the AIG. Salamati officer Hossam Mabrouk sent an ultimatum of 4 hours to the AIG at sunset, demanding them to release the hostages. The AIG declined the ultimatum and the offensive was launched at 12:15 am, December 15 local time.
Troops began swarming the four metro stations still under hostage from all sides. The vehicle number 11 at Al Ahmar was quickly freed and the hostage keepers were killed. The vehicles number 23 and 31 (respectively stopped at Majid Muhammad and El Fathi) were also freed by 1:00 am. However, the vehicle 17 suffered another fate.
The hostage keeper Hamid Bouchenach pulled a gallon of diesel out of his backpack, spilled all of its content then lit a flame at 1:24 am, which caused the arson of the vehicle 17 and the death of nearly all of the passengers. Only two commuters survived the arson of the vehicle (Abdallah Charif and Jannah Hammadi, which would die of her burns on the evening of December 17). The fire spread quickly, even affecting the electrical network of the station, and prompting the evacuation of the military and the arrival of the firefighters, which saw the fire even from the surface. The fire also affected numerous gas pipes which could've exploded. The fire stopped at 3:12 am and rendered the station unusable.
Aftermath
The consequences were catastrophic for the country in general, which saw itself being isolated from the international communauty because of its now apparent lack of safety and instability, as well as the slow response time from the authorities. Hamma Transits lost enormous sums of money due to the extensive damages and was near bankruption by early March 1996, and the reduction of tourism further aggravated losses of money.
Security was cranked up in public places, but remained insufficient, as the Civil War was attaining its peak in the middle of 1996.