Palestinian version of Colorado’s James Holmes

Imagine if President Obama gave an award to James Holmes, the shooter who slaughtered 12 people in a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, in 2012. Well, Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas just did the next best thing.

On May 28, Abbas awarded the Military Star of Honor to Fatima Barnawi, who planted a bomb in a Jerusalem movie theater in 1967. Miraculously, the bomb was discovered and defused. Both Barnawi and Holmes had the same intention: to slaughter innocent civilians. The only difference between them is that the Colorado gunman was more successful.

This is actually the second time in recent weeks that Abbas has heaped honors upon this particular would-be mass murderer. Abbas marked “Palestinian Prisoners Day,” April 17, by bestowing a medal on Barnawi, who was the first woman Fatah terrorist captured by the Israelis.

Barnawi was sentenced to life in prison for the attempted massacre. But she was released after 10 years as a “gesture” in honor of the visit to Israel of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. After the establishment of the PA in 1994, Barnawi was rewarded with the position of chief of the women’s section of the PA police.

Interviewed on PA TV a few weeks ago, Barnawi made it clear that she does not have the slightest regret about trying to slaughter innocent Jewish civilians.

 “All my life I had dreamed about it,” she said proudly. “We were supposed to place the explosives in the restroom or under one of the seats. I put them where we sat, near the middle [of the theater]... It was almost time. We left... While we were leaving, the bomb was discovered. An American sitting behind us said: ‘The ladies forgot their bag.’ The usher came to take the bag and found a ticking clock. There were only seconds left [until the explosion]. He called them [security]. They moved the people away and blew it up at the entrance... I say, this is not a failure, because it generated fear throughout the world. Every woman who carries a bag needs to be checked before she enters the supermarket, any place, cinemas and pharmacies... I don’t define that as a failure.”