TEL AVIV, 2 November 2004 — At least four people were killed and 30 more were wounded by a bomber in an open-air market in the heart of Israel’s commercial capital Tel Aviv yesterday, medical and security sources said.
“We have identified five bodies. One of them belongs to a male bomber who appears to have acted alone,” Tel Aviv police chief David Tzuri told a news conference.
Seven people were critically wounded in the explosion, he added. The blast ripped through the Hacarmel market in the center of the Mediterranean coastal city, an area dotted with bars and cafes. Police immediately sealed off the market for fear of a secondary explosion. Most of the victims were rushed to hospital in Tel Aviv as firefighters rushed to control the blaze caused by the blast.
Although there was no immediate claim of responsibility, it is the first such attack in more than two months, following twin suicide bus bombings in the southern city of Beersheva on Aug. 31 that killed 15 Israeli passengers. It is also the first attack since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, accused by the Israelis of giving the green light to attacks by militants, was flown to Paris for treatment for what is believed to be a blood disorder.
There have been hopes that Arafat’s departure from his West Bank headquarters on Friday could galvanize the peace process.
Israeli sources have said that the military planned to carry out only “limited” operations against Palestinians for the time being in order not to exacerbate tensions.
Arafat condemned the deadly bombing, his top aide Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP. Abu Rudeina told AFP that Arafat had asked him to condemn the attack on his behalf. “He noted that he has always been against attacks targeting civilians, whatever their nationality or religion,” the aide said.
In Arafat’s absence, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei has been placed in overall charge of the Palestinian Authority while former Premier Mahmoud Abbas is heading the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Arafat’s dominant Fatah faction.
Palestinian officials in Paris voiced optimism about Arafat’s health, saying there was “clear improvement” in his condition.
The frail 75-year-old Palestinian leader was undergoing a battery of tests at the Percy military hospital in the southwestern Paris suburb of Clamart to determine the nature of what is believed to be a serious blood disorder. “There is a clear improvement,” a senior official from the Palestinian delegation told AFP. “His condition is stable.”
