ALAS CHIRICANAS FLIGHT 00901

'Alas Chiricanas Flight 00901', registry HP-1202AC, was an Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante aircraft which exploded shortly after departing Colón, Panama for Panama City on July 19, 1994. All 21 on board, including 12 Jews, were killed in the bombing. Both Panamanian and American authorities consider the bombing an unsolved crime and an act of terrorism.
The wreckage of the Bandeirante was strewn about the Santa Rita Mountains near Colón. Panamanian investigators quickly determined that the explosion had been caused by a bomb, probably detonated by a suicide bomber who was also one of the passengers on the aircraft. Only one body was not claimed by relatives; this body is believed to be that of a man named Jamal Lya [1]. Officials suspected that the incident was an act of terrorism directed against Jews in part because it took place one day after the AMIA bombing in Buenos Aires which killed 85 people and which was strongly suspected to also be an act of terrorism against Jews.
Soon after Flight 00901 was downed, an organization using the name Ansar Allah, or "Followers of God", issued a statement expressing support for the bombing, and claiming that the attack was a suicide operation by a person with an Arab name. Later, it was determined the organization did not exist; many point to Hezbollah as the culprit. Panama made no arrests in connection with the bombing, and the case remains officially unsolved.

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★ 10 years after Panama airline bomb, Jews are pained by lack of suspects

★ Few clues, no certainty 10 years after Panama airline bombing killed 12 Jews

★ Acquittals in Argentine terror case cast a shadow across Panama

★ Argentine trials may shed light on Panama mystery

★ The FBI's "Seeking Information" page for Jamal Lya

★ Flight 00901 information from the Aviation Safety Network