This Day in History: August 6, 1983
Additional Date: August 6, 1983
A limpet mine exploded outside the Temple of Israel synagogue in central Johannesburg, the mother 'shul' of the Johannesburg Jewish Reform Congregation. The explosion took place four hours before State President Marais Viljoen was due to attend a ceremony there and was an attempt to prevent him from attending the temple's 50th anniversary. No one was injured, however, and Viljoen attended the celebration. It later emerged in Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) hearings that the Dolphin Unit of Umkhonto we Siswe (MK) was responsible for the incident. Mr Mahommed Iqbal Shaik received amnesty for the attack.