Four days later , on 13 March , a Jordanian soldier patrolling the borders between Jordan and Israel in the north near the Island of Peace , killed seven Israeli schoolgirls and wounded six others . The King , who was on an official visit to Spain , returned home immediately . He travelled to the Israeli town of Beit Shemesh to offer his condolences to the grieving families of the Israeli children killed . He went on his knees in front of the families , telling them that the incident was " a crime that is a shame for all of us . " " I feel as if I have lost a child of my own . If there is any purpose in life it will be to make sure that all the children no longer suffer the way our generation did . " His gesture was received very warmly in Israel , and Hussein sent the families $ 1million in total as compensation for the loss of life . The soldier was determined to be mentally unstable by a Jordanian military tribunal and was sentenced to 20 years in prison , which he served entirely
killed seven Israeli schoolgirls
Island of Peace massacre
Hussein of Jordan