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Egypt Independent
a day ago
- Egypt Independent
10-year-old among four killed by strikes in central Israel; overnight death toll in Israel rises to eight
A 10-year-old boy was among the four people killed by an Iranian missile strike in central Israel, with more people still unaccounted for at the scene, according to emergency services. A large emergency response operation is underway in Bat Yam city, where a building was directly hit. A 60-year-old woman, an 80-year-old woman and a girl whose age was not given were also killed in the strike, according to Israel's national emergency service Magen David Adom (MDA). Videos from Bat Yam showed a building with its facade ripped from it, and tall piles of rubble. Emergency workers could be seen scouring the scene with search dogs, and residents gathered on the street behind a cordon line. 'We don't have the exact number of people that are missing, but we do know that there's a lot of people that haven't contacted their loved ones yet, so now we're focusing on looking for them,' said Bat Yam mayor Tzvika Brot, in video by the Reuters news agency. Brot said the first building was hit around 2:30 am. Other buildings in the area were also damaged, with videos showing windows shattered and window frames torn from the outer walls. Rescue and security personnel help an injured woman in Bat Yam. Tomer Appelbaum/Reuters Authorities are now setting up family centers and working to support residents displaced by the strikes, he said, urging the public not to go near the site. Lt. Dean Elsdunne, the international spokesperson for Israel Police, said they received 'reports of numerous impact sites' after 'a large barrage of rockets' fired from Iran. 'We have a number of casualties that we had to medically evacuate, and unfortunately those include fatalities,' he said, speaking from Bat Yam, in Reuters video. He added that police are working with other Israeli agencies, including the military, to locate missing residents and secure the scene. About 140 people have been wounded in two locations across central Israel. In a separate wave of strikes, four additional people were killed in northern Israel, raising the death toll from attacks overnight into Sunday to eight.
Nahar Net
21-02-2025
- Nahar Net
Explosions involving several buses in central Israel in suspected attack
by Naharnet Newsdesk 20 February 2025, 22:44 Israeli police said that explosions rocked several buses in the central city of Bat Yam on Thursday evening in what they described as a "suspected terror attack", with an official saying that there were no injuries. "Preliminary report - Suspected terror attack. Multiple reports have been received of explosions involving several buses at different locations in Bat Yam," the police said in a statement. Large police forces had been deployed to search for suspects, the statement said. "Police bomb disposal units are scanning for additional suspicious objects. We urge the public to avoid the areas and remain alert for any suspicious items," it added. Tzvika Brot, the mayor of Bat Yam, said in a video statement that the explosions took place on two buses in two different parking lots. "There are no injured in these incidents," Brot said, adding that the causes of the explosions were still unclear. Television footage aired by some Israeli networks showed a completely burnt-out bus, while another was on fire. Israeli media said that bus drivers across Israel had been asked to stop and inspect their own buses for additional possible explosive devices.
The Independent
21-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Israel ‘terror attack': Everything we know about Tel Aviv bus bombings as police hunt for culprits
Three buses exploded in Israel in a suspected terror attack on Thursday night. Explosive devices planted on board were detonated in Bat Yam, in southern Tel Aviv. 'Intensified anti-terror' activity will continue in the occupied West Bank following the explosions, the military said, suggesting it will ramp up assaults on refugee camps which have increased in frequency and intensity since January. But many questions remain about Thursday's explosions, with the perpetrators still at large. Here is everything we know about the Israel bus attacks. What happened? Beginning at around 8:30pm on Thursday night, three explosive devices detonated in three buses in the Israeli city. The first two bombs detonated within minutes of each other, and the third 15 minutes later. No casualties were reported. The buses had been parked after finishing their routes and it was a miracle that no one was hurt, the city's mayor Tzvika Brot said. Explosives were also found on two other buses but did not detonate, with bomb squads currently working to defuse them, a police spokesperson told Channel 13 TV. All five bombs were identical and equipped with timers. After the explosions, all bus drivers working for the operator were ordered to stop and conduct a 'thorough inspection' of their vehicles. Once found to be safe, their routes were resumed, chief of the bus company Ofir Karni said. All buses were subsequently halted across Israel, as police and military officers were dispatched to search for suspicious objects. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said he was receiving updates from his military secretary. Police said the Shin Bet internal security agency was taking over the investigation. Investigators scoured for evidence amid the metal shells of the scorched buses, as the hunt for suspects got underway. It is unclear who is responsible. No group has definitively claimed responsibility for the attack. A group from Tulkarem in the occupied West Bank, which claimed to be a branch of Hamas' military wing the Qassam Brigades, said on Telegram: "We will never forget to take vengeance for our martyrs as long as the occupation is on our lands." The group did not appear to be explicitly taking responsibility. According to local media, one of the unexploded devices held a message reading 'Revenge from Tulkarem'. The West Bank city has been a focus of Israel's intensified military assault since January. Police spokesman Haim Sargrof told Israel TV that authorities are working to 'determine if a single suspect placed explosives on a number of buses, or if there were multiple suspects'. The explosives matched those which have been used in the West Bank, Mr Sargrof said, without elaborating. What will Israel's response be? The Israeli prime minister's office has ordered Israeli forces to carry out an 'intensive operation against centres of terrorism' in the West Bank, according to a statement. 'The Prime Minister also ordered the Israel Police and the (Israel Security Agency) to increase preventative activity against additional attacks in Israeli cities,' the statement added. The military said 'intensified anti-terror activity' would continue in the West Bank. Israel's strengthened assault on West Bank towns and camps came after a ceasefire came into effect in Gaza on January 19. Since the offensive began on 21 January, at least 44 Palestinians including five children and two women have been killed in the Tulkarem, Jenin and Rubas governorates, with attacks centring particularly on the refugee camps, the UN's humanitarian office, OHCHR, said.
Japan Times
21-02-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Multiple bus explosions in Israel put country on terrorism alert
Three buses exploded in Tel Aviv, Israel, area parking lots Thursday night, raising suspicions of an attempted, coordinated terrorist attack and prompting Israeli authorities to halt all buses and trains nationwide. There were no injuries reported. After the explosions, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement that he had instructed the military to carry out "a massive operation' in the West Bank targeting militant hubs and had ordered police and intelligence forces to step up preventive measures in Israeli cities to thwart any subsequent attempted attacks. The three buses were parked at different depots in Bat Yam, a city south of Tel Aviv, Tzvika Brot, the city's mayor, said in a statement. Unexploded bombs were also found in parking lots in the nearby city of Holon, Brot noted.
New York Times
21-02-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Multiple Bus Explosions in Israel Put Country on Terrorism Alert
Three buses exploded in Tel Aviv area parking lots on Thursday night, raising suspicions of an attempted, coordinated terrorist attack and prompting the Israeli authorities to halt all buses and trains nationwide. There were no injuries reported. After the explosions, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement that he had instructed the military to carry out 'a massive operation' in the West Bank targeting militant hubs and had ordered the police and intelligence forces to step up preventive measures in Israeli cities to thwart any subsequent attempted attacks. The three buses were parked at different depots in Bat Yam, a city south of Tel Aviv, Tzvika Brot, the city's mayor, said in a statement. Unexploded bombs were also found in parking lots in the nearby city of Holon, the mayor noted. Mr. Brot said he had ordered additional security patrols throughout Bat Yam. 'The city will remain on high alert throughout the weekend,' he added. 'However, the city's routine continues as usual. There is no change to school tomorrow or any other activities.' Ofir Karni, director of the Dan bus company, told Israeli news media that the last passenger on one of the buses that exploded had noticed a suspicious bag on a back seat and had alerted the driver. They drove into the depot, got off the bus and it exploded after they exited, he added. The series of explosions in central Israel came on what was already a difficult day for Israelis and for the country's tenuous truce with Hamas. Four coffins said to contain the remains of hostages, including two children, who were captured from a community near the Gaza border in the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack, were released and repatriated for burial on Thursday. But the Israeli military said in a statement early on Friday that only three of the bodies belonged to the hostages slated to be handed over. One of the bodies it received could not be identified, it said, adding it did not belong to Shiri Bibas — the mother of the two children handed over — and did not match the identity of any other hostage. The military called the issue a 'violation of utmost severity' of the cease-fire terms. The attempted bus attacks around Tel Aviv, which no one has yet claimed direct responsibility for, could also undermine mediators' efforts to get Israel and the militant group to negotiate the next phase of the cease-fire. Since late January, the Israeli military has been conducting intense raids in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, saying it is trying to root out Hamas and other militant groups. The operation across several West Bank cities has displaced roughly 40,000 Palestinians from their homes, making it the biggest displacement of civilians in the territory since the Arab-Israeli war of 1967, according to historians and researchers. The military has destroyed houses and ripped up roads in what it has said is an effort to uncover improvised explosive devices. The operations have killed dozens of Palestinians, according to both the Israeli and Palestinian authorities. Defense Minister Israel Katz directed the military to intensify those operations in refugee camps in the West Bank in response to the attempted attacks on Thursday. 'We will chase after the terrorists and destroy the terror infrastructure — whoever provides cover for terror will pay a heavy price,' he said in a statement. A West Bank arm of Hamas's military wing, the Qassam Brigades, issued a statement that appeared to praise the explosions but did not explicitly claim responsibility for them. The Israeli military said in a statement late on Thursday that it was working with intelligence authorities and the police to investigate the incident in Bat Yam. It said that 'intensified antiterror activity' in the West Bank was continuing, and that it had blocked entry to certain parts of the territory 'accordingly.' Bus and train service in Israel will remain paused until the police and intelligence authorities' give directives that it can resume, according to a statement from the transportation ministry.
