Palestinian ambassador in Prague dies from injuries after explosion

[King_David]

The Palestinian ambassador to the Czech Republic died Wednesday in a blast that occurred when he opened an old safe that had been left untouched for more than 20 years, officials said.

Ambassador Jamel al-Jamal, 56, was at home with his family at the time of the explosion, according to Palestinian Embassy spokesman Nabil El-Fahel. Al-Jamal was seriously injured and rushed to a hospital where he died, according to police spokeswoman Andrea Zoulova.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said no foul play was suspected, noting that the safe had been left untouched for more than 20 years.

The safe was recently moved from the old embassy building, but it had come from a building that used to house the Palestinian Liberation Organization's offices in the 1980s.

"The ambassador decided to open it. After he opened it, apparently something happened inside (the safe) and went off," Malki told The Associated Press.


http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/1.566512

[oberliner]

1. This story doesn't make any sense

How is this even possible?

[Scootaloo]

3. Seems pretty obvious

The safe was rigged against someone opening it... Which doesn't sound too far-fetched, being as we're talking about the PLO, in Prague, at the tail end of the Cold War.

The question I have is, was it just goddamn bad luck on his part, or did someone tell him to open it, knowing it was rigged?

[oberliner]

5. But he opened it and took out several items?

Am I misunderstanding something?

[Scootaloo]

6. Slow fuse? It was 20 years old

Maybe it didn't go off when opened, but was jostled.

Explosives are tricky.

[King_David]

7. Whoever was meant to open it probably

Would of known he had a few minutes to turn off the explosive trigger before continuum with his business. .

[dlwickham]

4. the safe was booby-trapped

to probably prevent anyone from stealing what was inside

after 25 years, people forgot about it

[dlwickham]

2. oops

[oberliner]

8. Weapons found at Palestinian envoy's Prague home

PRAGUE (AFP) -- Czech police said Thursday they had found unregistered weapons at the Prague residence of the Palestinian ambassador who was killed by an exploding safe on New Year's day.

Czech and Palestinian investigators are probing the death of ambassador Jamal al-Jamal, although police in Prague said it appeared to be accidental rather than a terror attack.

"The blast was the result of inexpert handling of an explosive," Prague police chief Martin Vondrasek told public radio.

"I can't say specifically what weapons we have found. We can say they have not been registered in the Czech Republic," he added.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=662258

There definitely appears to be more to this story.

For example:

But Palestinian embassy spokesman Nabil al-Fahel told AFP the safe was in almost everyday use and "according to our information there was no built-in anti-theft system."

And:

Zoulova told AFP it was "definitely not standard to have an arsenal of weapons or explosives in such a building."