Rabbi Urges Pig Fat on Buses
Fri February 13, 2004 08:15 AM ET

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A prominent Israeli rabbi has proposed hanging bags of pig fat in buses to deter Muslim suicide bombers who may want to avoid contact with an unclean animal, an Israeli official said on Thursday.

The idea -- suggested by Rabbi Eliezer Fisher, a rabbinical judge, in a letter to police -- signaled the extremes to which some Israelis may be willing to go to stop Palestinian bombers who have killed hundreds of Israelis in recent years.

Judaism, like Islam, considers pigs unclean. But the ultra-Orthodox rabbi has ruled that special dispensation can be given for placing bags of lard in buses and public places in an effort to prevent attacks.

Police had no immediate comment on the proposal.

Asked about the deterrent capability of pig fat on Israeli buses, Palestinian sources called it an exercise in futility.

Islamic militants are told by those who send them on bombing missions that their souls enter Paradise instantly after they explode despite any contamination or defilement of their bodies.

It's not a problem if it saves lives, Israeli Deputy Public Security Minister Yaakov Edri said, referring to the breaking of Jewish religious law.

I personally support it, Edri told Reuters. If it can deter even one suicide bomber -- then wonderful. Security authorities must consider it.

An article on the rabbi's proposal published on the Web site of the Israeli newspaper Maariv drew dozens of e-mail responses from readers ranging from incredulous to complimentary.
Source: Reuters