Hamas has announced its responsibility for a bomb explosion in Tel Aviv on Sunday night, which Israeli authorities report resulted in the death of the suspected attacker and injuries to a civilian. The group described the incident as a “martyrdom operation” conducted in collaboration with Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Hamas issued a warning that suicide attacks may “return to the forefront” if Israel continues its “massacres” against Palestinians. Israeli police and the Shin Bet security service confirmed the incident as a terrorist attack, involving a significant explosive device.
The blast occurred on Lehi Street in southern Tel Aviv, coinciding with the arrival of the US Secretary of State, who was in the city to advocate for a ceasefire in Gaza and a hostages release agreement. CCTV footage prior to the explosion showed a middle-aged man walking with a full backpack near a shop.
Israeli emergency services reported that paramedics discovered an unconscious man in his 50s with severe injuries, who was pronounced dead at the scene. A 33-year-old civilian sustained shrapnel wounds and received treatment before being transferred to a local hospital.
Ayalon District Police Commander noted that it was fortunate the explosion did not occur in a nearby synagogue or shopping center, which could have resulted in numerous casualties. The identity of the attacker remains unknown, although authorities suspect he was Palestinian.
In related news, a separate attack occurred on Sunday where an Israeli security guard was killed by a Palestinian in an industrial area near the Kedumim settlement in the northern West Bank. The victim, 38-year-old Gideon Perry, was assaulted with a hammer by a laborer who subsequently stole his firearm and fled the scene. Israeli military officials labeled this as a “very serious terrorist attack” and ongoing efforts are in place to locate the assailant.
No Palestinian armed groups have claimed responsibility for this attack, which followed an incident three days earlier in which Israeli settlers conducted a violent rampage in a Palestinian village near Kedumim. The Palestinian health ministry reported that a Palestinian man was killed amid the chaos, which provoked swift condemnation from various Israeli leaders.
The situation reflects a significant rise in violence across the West Bank since the onset of the conflict following Hamas’s lethal attack on Israel on October 7, alongside the ongoing war in Gaza.
