3 buses explode near Tel Aviv in suspected ‘terror attack’: What to know
Israel’s defense minister said they would boost operations in the West Bank in response to the explosions.
A branch of Hamas in the occupied West Bank purportedly claimed credit for a series of bus bombings near Tel Aviv on Thursday, marking an escalation in the conflict weeks after Israel launched a significant military operation across the northern West Bank.
A Telegram channel claiming to represent Hamas’ armed brigade in the West Bank city of Tulkarm posted a message Thursday evening that stated, “The revenge of the martyrs will not be forgotten as long as the occupier is present on our land. This is a jihad of victory or martyrdom.”
Israeli media reported at around 9:00 p.m. local time (2:00 p.m. ET) that three empty buses had exploded in the Tel Aviv suburb of Bat Yam, and two other bombs were found in the central city of Holon before they went off. Israeli police ordered public transport operators to search for more bombs and began a manhunt for the suspects. There were no injuries, per the reports.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the military to intensify operations in the West Bank in response to the incident.
“I have instructed the IDF to increase the intensity of its operations to thwart terror in the Tulkarm refugee camp and in the refugee camps in Judea and Samaria in general,” he said in a statement, adding that armed groups there are the "front line for the Iranian axis of evil.”
The Times of Israel reported that Israel has since blocked several checkpoints between Israel and the West Bank.
Why it matters: Tulkarm, located close to the Israeli border, has been the site of frequent Israeli military raids targeting Palestinian armed groups in recent weeks. The Palestinian Authority’s WAFA news agency reported on Thursday that the city has been subject to Israeli military activity for 25 consecutive days.
In late January, Hamas said two of its fighters were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Tulkarm.
Clashes between the Israeli military and Palestinian armed groups, as well as Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians and Palestinian militant attacks on Israelis, have all increased in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war.
Know more: Israel denounced Hamas on Thursday after the group held a ceremony for the return of four deceased hostages. One of the bodies was that of Kfir Bibas, who was nine months old when he was taken during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
The bodies were released as part of the ongoing exchanges per the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in Gaza that came into effect on Jan. 19.
