The release Sunday of Ahmad Daqamseh, a Jordanian terrorist who killed seven Israeli schoolgirls in 1997, reopened the wounds of the bereaved families -- wounds that never fully healed. Nurit Fathi, the mother of Sivan, sounded agitated and in pain. "I'm shocked. He [Daqamseh] should have served seven life sentences, but this is the maximum sentence in Jordan. I hope he rots at home if not in prison. The most painful thing is that they are releasing him on the anniversary of the murder. A great injustice has been done to us. What's 20 years in prison for the murder of seven girls? Our families have been ruined." "We were recently notified that he would be released from prison, despite our protests," she went on to say. "I feel they are mocking us because the pain is eternal. We could have been with a daughter who would bring us grandchildren. We were a very happy family, and ever since the incident I take tranquilizers. I believe God will punish him." Miri Meiri, whose daughter Ya'ala was murdered, told Israel Hayom: "This is a punch to the gut. Even though I knew his release was coming, this is a difficult day. I hope he gets all the evil in the world. It won't bring Ya'ala, who would have been 33 years old and could have been a mother, back to me. It's heartbreaking. I thought he would die in jail, but by the pictures he looks healthier than I am." Hezi Cohen, whose daughter Nirit was murdered, said, "The emotions are very difficult. It takes us back 20 years. His release is nauseating and horrible. My wife Ruth didn't survive this. She was depressed until she died of a broken heart. I sincerely hope we do something, instead of him bringing joy to his family, to kill him like Haman [the Persian minister who conspired to kill the Jews in the Purim story]. He ruined seven families and took seven girls." A defiant Daqamseh told Al Jazeera he did not recognize Israel, saying Arabs could not have normal ties with what he termed "the Zionist entity." During the trial, Daqamseh said the girls had mocked him while he was performing Muslim prayers in a border area returned to Jordanian sovereignty under the 1994 peace treaty. He would have faced the death penalty but the tribunal ruled he was mentally unstable and sentenced him to life imprisonment, which is equivalent to 20 years under Jordanian law. A few days after the incident, the late King Hussein personally apologized for the incident, traveling to Israel to visit and pay his respects to the girls' families. While lawmakers in Jordan welcomed his release, Israeli MK Oren Hazan (Likud) called on Jordanian authorities to arrest Daqamseh again for incitement. "Daqamseh is a murderer. ... When he calls for more murder of Israelis, this doubles the validity of the threat, endangering public safety in Jordan as well. If nothing is done then the blood of Daqamseh is on his own head. The fact that he was honorably welcomed in Jordan proves just how fragile the peace treaty with Jordan is and how it is nothing more than a fiction driven by interests." MK Yoel Hasson (Zionist Union) said that "terrorists from each end of the terrorism spectrum should rot in prison without pardon or deals." MK Jackie Levy (Likud) said he was pained to see a vile murderer that massacred girls with unusual brutality returning to his home and normative life after the heinous act."
