Sami Habbas was sifting through his stack of mail when he noticed a credit-card offer addressed to "Palestinian bomber".

The stunned Palestinian-American, a US Army veteran, opened the letter, which began, "Dear Palestinian bomber".

"I thought it was a joke or something," he said. "I'm very sad - devastated."

Habbas, who lives in Corona, California, phoned J P Morgan Chase and Company, which sent the offer, and two operators addressed him the same way: "Yes, Mr Bomber, what can we do for you?"

Habbas, 54, a grocer, has lived in the US since he was three, said he was shocked.

"It's very upsetting," he said. "I'm not... a Palestinian bomber. That's uncalled for. I have a name. My name is Sami Habbas."
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• This article was originally published on page 4 of Cape Argus on August 25, 2005