|
At
Least 16 Killed, 50 Injured in Bomb Attack Outside Tel Aviv
 |
|
The
pool hall in Rishon Letsion after the blast
|
RISHON
LETSION, Israel, May 8 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - At least 16
people were killed and 50 others injured late Tuesday, May 7, when a
Palestinian resistance fighter strolled into the middle of a crowded
pool hall on the southern outskirts of Tel Aviv and blew himself up.
The
armed wing of the Islamic resistance movement Hamas immediately
claimed responsibility for the attack in an anonymous call to Agence
France-Presse (AFP), saying it came in reprisal for the Israeli army's
bloody nine-day offensive in the West Bank refugee camp of Jenin.
The
attack struck around
11:00 pm
(2000 GMT) and caused a ceiling in the building to collapse on top of
people in a banquet hall on an adjoining floor, BBC reported.
"There
was a massive blast that really hit you in the face," said one
witness. One police official said the bomber appeared
to have carried the explosives into the Spiel club, in the industrial
suburbs of Tel Aviv, in a large suitcase.
Officials
said several of the injured were taken to hospital in critical
condition. The Israeli daily newspaper, Ha’aretz, said on its
website that 11 of the injured were in serious condition.
Witnesses
said the impact of the blast caused the third floor ceiling of the
building to collapse, and that the entire club appeared to be
destroyed.
Police
at the scene said the bomber had coolly walked through the door, past
people shooting pool and headed for the back of the room, where he
detonated his device.
Police
said they had not yet managed to get all of the bodies and possible
survivors out of the building. It was not immediately clear how many
people were inside the building at the time of the explosion.
They
also said there was no security guard at the entrance to the club.
"This
was the only place that didn't have a guard," said 23-year-old
student
Roy
, pointing to other bars in the vicinity that he said were all staffed
by armed doormen.
In
an anonymous phone call to AFP in
Jerusalem
, a man who said he represented the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the
military wing of the Hamas Islamic resistance movement, claimed
responsibility for the attack.
"We
claim the responsibility for Rishon Letsion," claimed the caller.
"We
are going to attack within this week and declare the holy war against
all the Israelis for what happened last month in Jenin camp by the
Israeli army," he said.
|
|
|
EgyptAir
Flight Went Down In Heavy Rains, Ambassador
Exclusive:
American Muslim Runs for U.S. Congress
Israel
Freezes Bethlehem Deal, Italy Refuses Receiving Deportees
Egypt
Says U.S. Made ‘Slip Of Tongue’ About Arafat
Two
Muslims killed in Nepal Army attack on mosque
UN
General Assembly Begins Emergency Session On Jenin
U.N.
War Crimes Prosecutor Tours Croatia Atrocity Sites
U.S. Grants Bahrain, Kuwait Permission To Visit Detainees in Guantanamo Bay
Bush Expands “Axis of Evil”, U.S. Body Calls for Sanctions Against Saudi Arabia
E.U. Confirms Aid to Palestine for Civilian Projects
U.N. Says Israeli Offensive on West Bank Cost $300m
Sharon Discussing Peace in Washington, Israeli Army Occupies Tulkarem
After
Le Pen’s Defeat, Dutch Far-right Leader Shot Dead
Saudi’s Faisal Not Convinced on Mideast “Peace” Conference
Jenin – Israel’s Latest War Crime
After Killing More Jenin Civilians, Israeli Army ‘Sorry’
U.S.: Jenin
Unanswered, Let’s Stress Humanitarian Aid
Israel Has
‘Other’ Reasons Not To Cooperate With Jenin Mission, Ahtisaari
U.S.
Eyewitnesses Narrate Two Weeks In Ramallah, Jenin
Jenin War
Crimes Investigation Needed: Human Rights Watch Report
Amnesty
Finds Evidence Confirming Atrocities in Jenin & Elsewhere
Faced With
Israeli Refusal, Annan Mulls Disbanding Jenin Fact-finding Team
Arab
American Leaders Meet with Annan To Discuss U.N. Mission To Jenin
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
