Mrs. Matzkin: Letter Bombs Will Not Deter Hadassah from Its Activities

Stating that the rash of letter bombs sent to Hadassah officials will not interfere with Hadassah’s work, Rose E. Matzkin, national president, said: “These terrorist acts cannot deter us. Hadassah will take every precaution and will carry on its work to support and maintain its network of health, education and social services in Israel.”

Three letter bombs–all postmarked from Malaysia–have been sent to Hadassah officials. The first two were delivered. One was opened and did not explode; the second was returned by the addresses to the post office and, also, did not explode. The third letter was returned to the post office undelivered because the woman to whom it was addressed had moved. This letter exploded in the hands of a postal worker, William Figueroa, who has been hospitalized. Mrs. Matzkin expressed deep concern for Figueroa whom she called an “innocent victim of senseless terrorism.”

Pointing out that Hadassah has had to learn to carry on in the face of terrorism, Mrs. Matzkin said that on April 13 Hadassah will observe the 25th anniversary of the death of 75 people–doctors, nurses and other medical personnel–who were killed in an Arab ambush on the road to the Hadassah Hospital on Mount Scopus. “However, we have yet to become hardened to the effects of violence. To us no victim is a faceless, symbolic sacrifice,” she said. “Each is an individual–loved and loving–with a right to live. When these innocent people–doctors, postal workers, tourists, athletes–are sacrificed to blind and vengeful fury we weep as though for the first time. But we are more determined than ever to carry on our work of healing.”