2002 Los Angeles International Airport shooting

Terrorist attack at the airline ticket counter of Israel's El Al May 2025 August 2022 2002 Los Angeles International Airport shooting Los Angeles International Airport, California, U.S. California#United States 220 center Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport Airplane silhouette.svg 33 56 33 N 118 24 29 W Passengers and employees of Israeli airline El Al 2002 7 4 11:30a.m. PDT; UTC-7 Glock 21 .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol Glock 9mm semi-automatic pistol Knife Mass shooting, terrorism Anger towards American support for Israel, Jihadism 3 (including the perpetrator) 5 (4 from gunfire) Hesham Mohamed Hadayet On July 4, 2002, a mass shooting occurred at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California, United States. In the attack, 41-year-old Hesham Mohamed Hadayet killed two people and wounded four at the ticket counter of El Al, Israel's national airline, before being fatally shot by an El Al security guard. Attack thumb|Check-in counters at the LAX terminal, where the incident happened On July 4, 2002, at around 11:30 a.m., Hadayet approached the El Al ticket counter inside the Tom Bradley International Terminal at the Los Angeles International Airport, pulled out two Glock pistols and started shooting at the 90 passengers standing in the line. Initially, Hadayet killed 25-year-old Customer Service Agent Victoria Hen, standing behind the counter, with a gunshot to the chest. Hadayet opened fire at the passengers as they huddled nearby and killed 46-year-old bystander Yaakov Aminov with a shot to the abdomen.Blankstein Andrew 2002-07-07 LAX Assailant Died of Abdominal Gunshot Wound https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-jul-07-me-lax7-story.html https://archive.today/20250605124302/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-jul-07-me-lax7-story.html June 5, 2025 2025-06-05 Los Angeles Times en-US In addition, he injured four other bystanders. The gunman used a .45 caliber handgun in the shooting. In addition, he had a 9mm handgun, a 6-inch knife and additional loaded magazines for both guns. After the gunman fired ten bullets at the crowd, one of El Al's security guards, who was unarmed, managed to knock him down. Meanwhile, El Al's security officer, Chaim Sapir, ran to the scene but was stabbed by the assailant with a knife. Despite this, Sapir managed to draw his pistol and shoot the gunman in the chest, killing him.he:התקפת יריות על דלפק אל-על בלוס אנג'לס he An attack on the Los Angeles ticket counter http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/1,7340,L-1982997,00.html Yedioth Internet July 6, 2002 Ynet and agencies September 29, 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20121014170213/http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/1,7340,L-1982997,00.html October 14, 2012 live LAX Assailant Died of Abdominal Gunshot Wound https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-jul-07-me-lax7-story.html Los Angeles Times Andrew Blankstein July 7, 2002 October 7, 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20151124114635/http://articles.latimes.com/2002/jul/07/local/me-lax7 November 24, 2015 live Perpetrator Hesham Mohamed Hadayet (July 4, 1961–July 4, 2002), a 41-year-old Egyptian national, was identified as the assailant. He emigrated to the United States in 1992, arriving on a tourist visa but applied for political asylum. The Immigration and Naturalization Service denied his asylum request in 1995, but the Post Office returned a letter notifying him as undeliverable. No further efforts appear to have been made to locate and deport him. Shortly before his scheduled 1997 deportation, his wife won the Diversity Immigrant Visa lottery, enabling both to become legal residents.Ramirez Eddy Panel Probes LAX Gunman Terrorism: House lawmakers say closer scrutiny by INS might have prevented killings by Egyptian immigrant. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-oct-10-me-lax10-story.html July 20, 2015 Los Angeles Times October 2, 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20160307200814/http://articles.latimes.com/2002/oct/10/local/me-lax10 March 7, 2016 live In Egypt, he had been arrested for being a member of Al-Jama'a al-Islamiyya, an Islamist group. He denied the accusation to U.S. immigration authorities. He said he was a member of Asad ibn al-Furat Mosque Association, a group that aimed to "understand truly and apply Islamic law in the 20th century under any circumstances."Arena Kelly INS: Airport gunman spoke of terrorism allegation in '92 interview http://www.cnn.com/2002/LAW/09/25/lax.shooting.asylum/ July 20, 2015 CNN September 25, 2002 https://web.archive.org/web/20150923205219/http://www.cnn.com/2002/LAW/09/25/lax.shooting.asylum/ September 23, 2015 live Hadayet had a green card (through the Diversity Visa Lottery), which allowed him to work as a limousine driver and to apply for United States citizenship after five years. He was married and had at least one child. At the time of the shooting, Hadayet was living in Irvine, California. He committed the shooting on his 41st birthday.Charles Feldman Los Angeles airport shooting kills 3 http://archives.cnn.com/2002/US/07/04/la.airport.shooting/ https://web.archive.org/web/20041204221915/http://archives.cnn.com/2002/US/07/04/la.airport.shooting/ December 4, 2004 dead Los Angeles, California CNN July 5, 2002Diversity visa program: What you need to know https://www.foxnews.com/politics/diversity-visa-program-what-you-need-to-know/ November 1, 2017 Fox News November 1, 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20171101171711/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/11/01/diversity-visa-program-what-need-to-know.html November 1, 2017 liveSacchetti Maria Here's what you need to know about the Diversity Visa Lottery Program https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/immigration/heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-diversity-visa-lottery-program/2017/11/01/69f3f422-bf15-11e7-97d9-bdab5a0ab381_story.html November 1, 2017 The Washington Post November 1, 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20171101201515/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/immigration/heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-diversity-visa-lottery-program/2017/11/01/69f3f422-bf15-11e7-97d9-bdab5a0ab381_story.html November 1, 2017 live Aftermath In September 2002, federal investigators concluded that Hadayet hoped to influence U.S. government policy in favor of the Palestinians and that the incident was a terrorist act, although he didn't seem to be connected to any terrorist organisation. They also inferred that he had been further influenced by the fact that his limousine business was failing, his marriage was going badly, and he felt lonely after his wife and children had left for Egypt.http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/West/04/12/airport.shooting/ FBI, Justice: El Al attack was terrorism CNN April 12, 2003 December 2, 2008 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20070203145025/http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/West/04/12/airport.shooting/ February 3, 2007 See also 1996 Timika shooting 1985 Rome and Vienna airport attacks 2013 Los Angeles International Airport shooting Fort Lauderdale airport shooting List of attacks on Jewish institutions in the United States List of homicides in California References 33.942 -118.414 type:event_globe:earth_region:US-CA title Category:Islamic terrorism in California Category:2002 murders in the United States Category:Terrorist attacks on airports in the United States Category:Terrorist incidents in the United States in 2002 Category:2002 mass shootings in the United States Category:Los Angeles International Airport Category:2002 in Los Angeles Category:Anti-Israeli sentiment in the United States Category:Murder in Los Angeles Category:Terrorist incidents in Los Angeles Category:July 2002 crimes in the United States Category:Mass shootings in California Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in California Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in 2002 Category:Mass shootings involving semi-automatic pistols in the United States Category:El Al accidents and incidents Category:2002 in international relations Category:Egypt in the Arab–Israeli conflict Category:Egyptian-American history Category:Stabbing attacks in 2002 Category:Terrorist incidents involving knife attacks in the United States Category:Egypt–Palestine relations