Press Release: Malki Roth’s Family Files Federal Anti-Terrorism Act Lawsuit Against Ahlam Tamimi

9 hours ago
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 17, 2026

CONTACT:

National Jewish Advocacy Center (NJAC)

Phone: (332) 278-1100

Malki Roth’s Family Files Federal Anti-Terrorism Act Lawsuit Against Ahlam Tamimi

Civil action filed in Washington, D.C. seeks to hold the convicted Sbarro bombing operative personally accountable for the killing of 15-year-old American Malka “Malki” Roth

The Estate of Malka "Malki" Roth, et al. v. Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-TamimiCase No. 1:26-cv-02836 (D.D.C.), filed August 11, 2026

WASHINGTON, DC — The Estate of Malka "Malki" Roth, by and through its joint representatives Arnold Roth and Frimet Roth, together with Arnold Roth and Frimet Roth individually, filed a civil action on August 11, 2026 in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia against Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi. The Roth family is represented by The National Jewish Advocacy Center (NJAC).

The action arises from the terrorist attack against the Sbarro pizza restaurant in downtown Jerusalem, Israel, which occurred twenty-five years ago this week.

According to the sworn FBI affidavit of Special Agent Laura S. Walter, filed as an exhibit to the complaint, a terrorist wearing an explosive belt entered the Sbarro pizza restaurant on Jaffa Road near its intersection with King George Street in downtown Jerusalem at approximately 1:55 p.m. on August 9, 2001, and detonated an explosive device concealed within a guitar. The affidavit states that the bomber killed himself along with 15 civilians, including seven children and two United States nationals, Judith Lillian Greenbaum and 15-year-old Malki. At least 122 other people were injured, including four United States nationals.

Tamimi's alleged role

In June 2001, Tamimi agreed to join, and to carry out attacks on behalf of, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, a designated foreign terrorist organization.

On July 30, 2001, Tamimi placed an explosive device concealed in a beer can on a shelf at a Super Co-op supermarket on King George Street in Jerusalem, and that device detonated, causing substantial property damage but no human casualties.

Before the Sbarro bombing, Tamimi scouted downtown Jerusalem, selected the target area, and met in Ramallah with the terrorist who would be wearing the explosive belt. On August 9, 2001, Tamimi traveled with him by taxi to Jerusalem, led him to the intersection of King George Street and Jaffa Street, and instructed him to detonate the device in that area or somewhere nearby on King George Street if the opportunity arose to cause more casualties. She then left the bomber and returned to Ramallah.

Mark Goldfeder, CEO of NJAC explained that “So far extradition has failed and diplomacy has stalled, and Ahlam Tamimi has spent a quarter century beyond the reach of any American courtroom. Congress anticipated exactly this problem. The Anti-Terrorism Act gives American victims a real civil remedy against the terrorists themselves when the criminal process cannot reach them, and the Roth family is now invoking it.”

The criminal record

Tamimi pled guilty in an Israeli court on or about June 22, 2003 to an indictment charging her with multiple counts of murder arising from the Sbarro bombing. At her sentencing hearing on October 23, 2003, at which she was represented by counsel, she gave a statement admitting her involvement in the bombing, expressed satisfaction at its results, and expressed no remorse for those killed or injured. The Israeli court sentenced her to 16 life terms. She served approximately eight years and was released on October 28, 2011 as part of a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas, after which she returned to Jordan.

The United States charged Tamimi by criminal complaint sworn on July 15, 2013 before Magistrate Judge Deborah A. Robinson, Case No. 1:13-mj-580 (D.D.C.), with conspiring to use and using a weapon of mass destruction against a United States national outside the United States resulting in death, and with aiding and abetting and causing an act to be done, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2332a(a)(1) and 2. The charge was unsealed in March 2017, and the FBI placed Tamimi on its list of Most Wanted Terrorists.

"This case does not start from a blank page. An Israeli court took her guilty plea in 2003, a sworn FBI affidavit sets out her role in detail, and the United States charged her by criminal complaint. Those documents describe the same conduct, and that documented record is where this civil action picks up the baton," said David Benger, Litigation Counsel at NJAC.

Extradition

Tamimi has remained in Jordan since her release in 2011. The United States has publicly sought her surrender, and she has not been extradited. The United States has maintained that the 1995 extradition treaty with Jordan is valid and in force.

"Twenty-five years is a very long time to wait. The passing of those years has not made what happened inside that restaurant any smaller, and it has not made the people who were there any easier to forget. A courtroom is where that record belongs,” said Lisa Brunner, Senior Litigation Counsel at NJAC.

"No lawsuit can repair what was so cruelly stolen from the Roths. What a court can offer is some semblance of justice after twenty-five years of bitter waiting," added Rachel Sebbag, Litigation Counsel, NJAC. “It is way past time for the terrorist who murdered Malki to be dragged into a US court-room and face the consequences of what she did.”

About the National Jewish Advocacy Center (NJAC)

The National Jewish Advocacy Center is a nonprofit organization that harnesses the power of the legal system to advocate for and protect Jewish civil rights using creative, innovative strategies.

For media inquiries or assistance, contact press@njaclaw.org or (332) 278-1100.

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