One victim of Jerusalem blasts has died – Israeli police
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JERUSALEM (Reuters) –
Two explosions at bus stops on Jerusalem’s outskirts killed one and wounded up to 15 people on Wednesday (November 23), emergency services said, in what Israeli police said appeared to be an attack by Palestinian militants.
They blamed the initial blast on an explosive device planted at a bus station near the city exit, while a second soon after hit a bus stop in the neighbourhood of an urban settlement in the city’s east.
The explosions, about 30 minutes apart, appeared to be a Palestinian attack, police said.
Israeli security forces stand at site of explosion at a bus stop near entrance to Jerusalem, Israel, 23 November 2022. According to Israeli police, at least 12 people were injured in two explosions at two bus stops near entrances to Jerusalem. EPA-EFE/ATEF SAFADI
There were no immediate reports of fatalities but health services said 12 people had been taken to hospital from the first blast, at least two with serious injuries. At least three people were wounded in the second explosion, police said.
The explosions, which carry echoes of the bus bombings that were a hallmark of the Palestinian revolt of 2000-2005, follow months of tension in the occupied West Bank after the Israeli military launched a crackdown in the wake of a series of deadly attacks in Israel.
A spokesman for the Palestinian militant group Hamas praised the apparent bombings but stopped short of claiming responsibility.
The explosions came as former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu negotiates with allies to form a new right-wing government including members of religious and far-right parties.
