Israel says bomb blast hits bus in Tel Aviv
Nov 21, 2012, 10:35 AM
JERUSALEM (AP) – A bomb ripped through an Israeli bus near the nation’s military headquarters in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, wounding at least 10 people, Israeli officials said.
The blast came amid a weeklong Israeli offensive against Palestinian militants in Gaza that has killed more than 130 Palestinians. Militant rocket fire into Israel has killed five Israelis.
The bus exploded about noon on one of the coastal city’s busiest arteries, near the Tel Aviv museum and across from an entrance to the Kirya, Israel’s national defense headquarters.
The bus was charred and blackened, its side windows blown out and its glass scattered on the asphalt.
An Israeli driver who witnessed the explosion told Army Radio the bus was “completely charred inside.” Another witness said there were few passengers on the bus when it exploded.
Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said authorities were investigating whether the bomb had been planted and left on the bus or whether it was the work of a suicide bomber.
Of the 10 wounded, three people were moderately to seriously hurt, Rosenfeld said.
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