Blast in Tel Aviv Kills 1, Injures 20

The first bombing in Israel in four months killed at least one person and injured 20 today at a Tel Aviv bus stop during morning rush hour, Israeli authorities said.

A branch of Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade in the West Bank city of Nablus claimed responsibility, according to Israeli news reports. The group is an offshoot of the Fatah movement led by Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat.

Israeli police said the bomb appeared to have been concealed in thick bushes near the bus stop and detonated by remote control.

Yossi Sedbon, the police commander in Tel Aviv, told reporters that the presence of security guards at bus stops probably was deterring suicide bombers. He said the suspected device was not spotted by the guards.

A woman died of her injuries after being taken to a hospital, said police spokeswoman Shlomit Herzberg. At least five other people were seriously injured.

The bus stop serves two routes and is near a spot where at least two suicide bombings have occurred.

Blood streaked the pavement, and the facade of a nearby apartment building bore a scorch mark. The metal bus shelter appeared to have little damage, but the explosion smashed the rear window of a bus that had just passed.

One man said he heard the explosion behind him after walking past the site. “I turned around and saw a few people lying on the ground,” said Ori Moskana. “They were crying. They were crying that they were hurt.”

The last bombing in Israel occurred March 14, when two suicide attackers from the Gaza Strip killed 10 workers at the Ashdod seaport. Today’s blast ended the longest stretch without such an attack in the nearly four-year Palestinian uprising.

Israeli officials say planned attacks by militant groups have been foiled many times. The security establishment attributes much of the drop-off to a barrier it is building in and around the West Bank, which makes it more difficult for potential attackers to enter Israel.

Israeli officials rejected a nonbinding ruling Friday by the International Court of Justice in The Hague that said the barrier violated the right of Palestinians to move freely and should be torn down because it amounted to a “de facto annexation” of Palestinian land.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was to meet with key ministers today to discuss the implications of the ruling, but Israel made it clear that it did not recognize the court’s jurisdiction to rule on the planned 437-mile barrier, which is about one-third complete.

The bus stop explosion came a day after four Palestinians were killed when a car exploded in the central Gaza Strip. Palestinians and Israelis blamed each other for the blast.

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Times staff writer Ellingwood reported from Jerusalem and special correspondent Zer from Tel Aviv.