Two explosions were recorded this Wednesday near bus stops in Jerusalem. An Israeli teenager died and at least 20 other people were injured in what police described as alleged Palestinian attacks.
The two explosions occurred in nearby locations, the first on the outskirts of Jerusalem, where people tend to crowd at bus stops, and the second in Ramot, a settlement and Jewish quarter north of the city.
The police confirmed the death of a teenager and specified that there are several seriously injured.
High voltage
The alleged attacks occurred at a time when theTensions between Israelis and Palestinians are high, after months of Israeli raids on the West Bank triggered by a series of deadly attacks on Israelis that killed 19 people. There has been a spike in attacks by Palestinians in recent weeks.
The violence also comes as former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in talks about forming a coalition after national elections and likely forming what should be Israel’s most right-wing government.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, an extremist MP who he called for the death penalty for the Palestinian aggressors and what it will become the minister in charge of the police under Netanyahu, he said the attack meant Israel had to take sides Harder against Palestinian violence.
“We have to impose a price on terror,” he said at the site of the first blast, “we have to regain control of Israel, to restore the deterrent against terror.”
Shrapnel bombs at rush hour
Police, who were looking for the suspected attackers, said their initial findings showed they had been placed shrapnel-laden explosive devices in both places.
The explosions occurred amid traffic chaos in rush hour and police shut down part of a major highway outside the city, where the first explosion occurred.
Video recorded shortly after the first explosion showed debris strewn across the sidewalk as ambulance sirens wailed. A bus in Ramot was filled with what looked like shrapnel marks.
“It was crazy. There’s damage everywhere hereYosef Haim Gabay, a medic who was at the scene when the first blast occurred, told Israel Military Radio: ‘I have seen people injured bleeding everywhere.”
While Palestinians have carried out stabbings, road killings and shootings in recent years, bombings have become very rare since the end of a Palestinian uprising nearly two decades ago.
The US embassy in Jerusalem condemned the violence, as did the EU ambassador to Israel, Dimiter Tzantchev.
The militant group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip and once carried out suicide bombings against Israelis, praised the perpetrators of the explosions, noting that it had been a heroic operation, but did not claim responsibility.
“The occupation is paying the price for its crimes and aggression against our people,” Hamas spokesman Abd al-Latif al-Qanua said.
Israel has said that, in response to the blasts, was about to close two crossings to the West Bank for Palestinians near the city of Jenin, a militant stronghold.
By Alon Bernstein, Associated Press
ap
Source: Clarin
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.