Suicide terrorist's accomplice chose Israeli Sbarro restaurant "because many people entered it"

Terrorist Ahlam Tamimi led a suicide bomber to the Sbarro pizza shop in Jerusalem in August 2001. 15 people were murdered in the attack, 7 of them children. In October 2011, Tamimi was released from Israeli prison as part of the Shalit prisoner exchange deal brokered between the Israeli government and Hamas. Interview with terrorist Ahlam Tamimi on Hamas TV after her release from Israeli prison: Ahlam Tamimi: "You make a big deal about the Sbarro restaurant (bombing) in which 15 Israelis were killed, but my first operation (i.e., terror attack) was at the King George supermarket (in central Jerusalem). I chose the Sbarro restaurant, but I didn't go in with him (i.e., the terrorist). A few days beforehand, I counted the number of people entering the restaurant, a large number of people would enter this restaurant." Host: "What did you talk about with the Martyrdom-seeker on the way (to the suicide attack)?" Tamimi: "It's impossible to describe him with words. We met only on the day of the operation. The [Hamas] brothers changed his entire appearance. He wasn't bearded. He wore jeans and a hat. It's important to say that I was walking with a spiritual person. Next to him, I sensed a sort of divine aura surrounding us. We looked into each other's eyes. I said to him, 'There is no God but Allah,' and he said, 'and Muhammad is Allah's messenger,' and he smiled." Host: "We interviewed the parents of the heroic Martyrdom-seeker (i.e., the suicide bomber), Izz A-Din Al-Masri, who blew himself up in the Sbarro restaurant in Jerusalem." Father of suicide bomber: "We are proud of Ahlam Tamimi even before our son, by Allah. She fulfilled her obligation and made me proud. We thank Allah and Ahlam Tamimi, who brought him [my son] to this high level." Mother of suicide bomber: " My son chose his path and his fate, and we do not regret that. Praise Allah, that is an honor for him. What [higher] level could he have asked for? That is the best level in the eyes of his Lord." Tamimi: "I always had an inner conflict whether they were happy with me or not." Host: "How did you conduct yourself [in the interrogation]?" Tamimi: "By Allah, you won't believe it, but I was always smiling. I don't know why my smile always angered them." Host: "The judge who sentenced you ordered that you should not be included in any exchange deal." Tamimi: "I say to him -- you will die in your anger. I was released, and you remain in your defeat. I hope that you will be defeated, and may Allah add more defeat to you."