Though both Fatah and Islamic Jihad claimed to have carried out the attack, Hamas - the terrorist organization that runs the Palestinian Authority - defended it, and blamed Israel. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri called the multiple murder a "natural result of the continued Israeli crimes against our people." He said, "The Israeli occupation bears responsibility for the continuation of its aggression. Our people are in a state of self-defense and they have every right to use all means to defend themselves."
The National Forensic Institute in Abu Kabir, near Jaffa, has completed the identification of the nine victims killed in the bombing. The names of eight have been publicized:
* Security guard Binyamin Hafuta, 47, from Lod, who tried to check the bag that the terrorist then detonated.
* Victor Erez, 60, of Givatayim. A grandfather of five, he lost a leg in the Six Day War.
David Shaulov, 29, Holon. His wife Varda is in her ninth month of pregnancy with their third child.
* Phillip Balahsan, 45, Ashdod. When the blast occurred, he embraced and covered his two children to protect them; he died en route to the hospital from shrapnel that penetrated his body.
* Lily Yonas, 43, from Oranit.
*Ariel Darhi, 31, from Bat Yam.
* Boda Firushka, 50, and Roselia Basanya, 48, foreign workers from Romania.
The terrorist (pictured above) was reported to be a 16-year-old boy, though his family later claimed that he was 21.
The powerful and deadly blast occurred at 1:30 PM in southern Tel Aviv, at a fast food stand on the streets that housed the old Central Bus Station. The explosion was felt throughout a radius of at least 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles). Over 60 people were wounded, and about half of them are still hospitalized today. One of them - a 16-year-old boy from the United States - is in very critical condition, and nine others are in critical condition. Another 15 victims are listed in moderate condition. At least one of the wounded was also hurt in a similar suicide terrorist attack in the same location three months ago; no one was killed in that blast.
The Magen David Adom blood services announced a shortage in blood rations as a result of the attack, and especially of type O. Volunteers can donate blood at Magen David Adom chapters around the country, as well as special stations set up in large shopping malls. For more information, visit www.mdais.org.
At the time of the attack, Israel's security apparatus was studying 19 specific terrorist threats - of which the fatal attack was not one. Some 80 additional general threats of attack have also been reported to Israel's intelligence agencies.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is to convene his interim Cabinet late this morning to weigh its response to the murderous attack and the provocative statements of Hamas defending it. The group will hear the alternatives formulated at a meeting held in Defense Minister Sha'ul Mofaz's office in Tel Aviv yesterday.
Though the IDF attacked targets in Gaza yesterday and last night, and arrested 38 terrorists throughout Judea and Samaria since yesterday, the government may not want to retaliate in a major way in order not to harm the international diplomatic anti-Hamas campaign. MK Roni Bar-On, expected to be appointed a Cabinet minister by Ehud Olmert in the coming weeks, said today that the terrorist state of Hamas should be destroyed, but that does not appear to be a realistic option at present.
The U.S. responded angrily to Hamas' condoning of the attack, warning that such an attitude will have "the gravest effects" on relations between the Hamas Authority and countries such as the U.S. that seek Middle East peace. White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said the attack was a "despicable act of terrorism for which no excuse or justification is possible." He added that a PA government that encourages attacks on innocent people can only do great harm to the interests of the Palestinian people and ensure its own isolation.
State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack also sharply criticized the Hamas-led government. "Given the opportunity, the first opportunity, to denounce an act of terror, to condemn an act of terror, Hamas has decided to condone it," he said. "That is, we are now seeing the true nature of this Hamas-led government. They would rather encourage 16-year-olds to go out, strap explosives to them, and go out and try to kill other 16-year-olds, other innocent civilians. That's the kind of government that you're dealing with."
Both spokesmen reiterated that the United States will have no dealings with a government led by Hamas, and they urged all countries to demand that it abandon support for terrorism. In related news, McCormack said the United States is seeking clarification from officials of Qatar - a longtime regional ally - regarding news that the Persian Gulf state plans to grant $50 million to the Palestinian Authority. Alongside his concern about whether the money would reach Hamas hands, McCormack noted that this sum is only about a third of the PA's monthly payroll commitments.
PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah denounced the killings.
The National Forensic Institute in Abu Kabir, near Jaffa, has completed the identification of the nine victims killed in the bombing. The names of eight have been publicized:
* Security guard Binyamin Hafuta, 47, from Lod, who tried to check the bag that the terrorist then detonated.
* Victor Erez, 60, of Givatayim. A grandfather of five, he lost a leg in the Six Day War.
David Shaulov, 29, Holon. His wife Varda is in her ninth month of pregnancy with their third child.
* Phillip Balahsan, 45, Ashdod. When the blast occurred, he embraced and covered his two children to protect them; he died en route to the hospital from shrapnel that penetrated his body.
* Lily Yonas, 43, from Oranit.
*Ariel Darhi, 31, from Bat Yam.
* Boda Firushka, 50, and Roselia Basanya, 48, foreign workers from Romania.
The terrorist (pictured above) was reported to be a 16-year-old boy, though his family later claimed that he was 21.
The powerful and deadly blast occurred at 1:30 PM in southern Tel Aviv, at a fast food stand on the streets that housed the old Central Bus Station. The explosion was felt throughout a radius of at least 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles). Over 60 people were wounded, and about half of them are still hospitalized today. One of them - a 16-year-old boy from the United States - is in very critical condition, and nine others are in critical condition. Another 15 victims are listed in moderate condition. At least one of the wounded was also hurt in a similar suicide terrorist attack in the same location three months ago; no one was killed in that blast.
The Magen David Adom blood services announced a shortage in blood rations as a result of the attack, and especially of type O. Volunteers can donate blood at Magen David Adom chapters around the country, as well as special stations set up in large shopping malls. For more information, visit www.mdais.org.
At the time of the attack, Israel's security apparatus was studying 19 specific terrorist threats - of which the fatal attack was not one. Some 80 additional general threats of attack have also been reported to Israel's intelligence agencies.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is to convene his interim Cabinet late this morning to weigh its response to the murderous attack and the provocative statements of Hamas defending it. The group will hear the alternatives formulated at a meeting held in Defense Minister Sha'ul Mofaz's office in Tel Aviv yesterday.
Though the IDF attacked targets in Gaza yesterday and last night, and arrested 38 terrorists throughout Judea and Samaria since yesterday, the government may not want to retaliate in a major way in order not to harm the international diplomatic anti-Hamas campaign. MK Roni Bar-On, expected to be appointed a Cabinet minister by Ehud Olmert in the coming weeks, said today that the terrorist state of Hamas should be destroyed, but that does not appear to be a realistic option at present.
The U.S. responded angrily to Hamas' condoning of the attack, warning that such an attitude will have "the gravest effects" on relations between the Hamas Authority and countries such as the U.S. that seek Middle East peace. White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said the attack was a "despicable act of terrorism for which no excuse or justification is possible." He added that a PA government that encourages attacks on innocent people can only do great harm to the interests of the Palestinian people and ensure its own isolation.
State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack also sharply criticized the Hamas-led government. "Given the opportunity, the first opportunity, to denounce an act of terror, to condemn an act of terror, Hamas has decided to condone it," he said. "That is, we are now seeing the true nature of this Hamas-led government. They would rather encourage 16-year-olds to go out, strap explosives to them, and go out and try to kill other 16-year-olds, other innocent civilians. That's the kind of government that you're dealing with."
Both spokesmen reiterated that the United States will have no dealings with a government led by Hamas, and they urged all countries to demand that it abandon support for terrorism. In related news, McCormack said the United States is seeking clarification from officials of Qatar - a longtime regional ally - regarding news that the Persian Gulf state plans to grant $50 million to the Palestinian Authority. Alongside his concern about whether the money would reach Hamas hands, McCormack noted that this sum is only about a third of the PA's monthly payroll commitments.
PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah denounced the killings.