A bomb blast in the Carmel market in the center of the city killed one woman and injured 35 other people today, among them at least three children. The dead woman was not immediately identified. Eight of the injured were reported in serious condition. The terrorist outrage occurred shortly before noon when the market was crowded with pre-holiday shoppers.
Several hours later, Israeli air force planes attacked terrorist bases in the south Lebanese area of Tyre, Damour and Ras-el Ein. All planes returned safely to their bases. The bases struck have served as exit points for terrorists on their way to attack Israel, it was stated by an Israel armed forces spokesman. The military arm of the Palestine Liberation Organization claimed responsibility for today’s outrage. A PLO spokesman in Damascus said the action was carried out by the Kamal al Wassan unit, named after the PLO senior commander who was killed last year in Lebanon.
Describing today’s tragedy, Police Chief Moshe Tyomkin said a bomb containing a half kilogram of explosives detonated on the pavement near a fish vendor’s stand. The injuries it caused were mainly to the lower portions of the body and legs. Ironically, a precaution taken against terrorist bombings may have been responsible for the large number of casualties.
Tyomkin said that recent security measures in the market called for closing the exposed area underneath vendors’ stands to prevent the concealment of bombs there. This forced the perpetrators to leave their explosive device on the street which was crowded with shoppers and pedestrians. The police official noted that the terrorists managed to penetrate the market despite increased security measures and their bomb went undetected although in plain view. “We shall have to learn the lesson of this outrage,” he said.
AREA CORDONED OFF
Markets which do their heaviest business before the Sabbath or holidays have been a favored target of terrorists bent on inflicting the maximum civilian casualties. The Carmel market was jammed with women shoppers today, many of them with children on their Passover vacation from school. The bomb explosion, heard blocks away, touched off panic, but emergency services were on the scene almost immediately. Police cordoned off the area and evacuated thousands of persons as they searched for additional bombs.
Ambulances equipped as field hospitals arrived to rush the injured to hospitals and administer first aid. Many persons near the scene of the blast were treated for shock. Police closed roads leading to the nearest hospitals causing mammoth traffic jams in adjacent parts of the city. The market area was checked foot-by-foot by police and army units before it was pronounced safe. It was reopened to the public about two hours after the explosion.
According to an armed forces spokesman, seven Israelis were killed and 166 injured in It acts of terrorism in the last four months.
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