Three buses explode in Israel in suspected terror attack

Three buses in a parking lot in Israel reportedly exploded on Thursday night, allegedly resulting in a terrorist attack. Miraculously, no one was injured in the incident. According to TPS-IL, an Israeli news agency, several other bombs were discovered on other buses.

Following the explosions, Israeli officials have ordered the immediate halt of all bus and train services. All vehicles are currently being inspected for potential bombs. The explosions occurred at approximately 8:30 PM on Thursday night at a bus depot in Bat Yam, a city situated just south of Tel Aviv.

Upon arrival at the scene, firefighters swiftly extinguished the fires. Fortunately, the buses were empty at the time of the explosions, preventing any casualties.

Two additional explosive devices were discovered beneath other buses after the police and Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security agency, instructed drivers to halt buses and conduct a thorough inspection for such devices.

A preliminary police investigation revealed that all the explosive devices were identical and equipped with a timer set to detonate on Friday. The explosions occurred just hours after Hamas released the bodies of four Israeli hostages held in Gaza. These hostages were the first eight individuals that Israel believes have passed away and are being returned during the current phase of the ceasefire.

“We must determine whether a single individual placed explosives on multiple buses, or if there were multiple perpetrators involved,” Police spokesman Haim Sargrof stated.

According to Tzvika Brot, the mayor of Bat Yam, the buses had completed their routes and were currently parked in a designated area. He also mentioned that one of the unexploded bombs was being defused in the nearby town of Holon.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been receiving regular updates from his military secretary regarding these incidents and is anticipated to convene a security assessment meeting.

Israel has launched multiple military offensives against Palestinian militants in the West Bank, following a ceasefire that ended on January 19th.

In response to the bus bombings, Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to intensify operations in the West Bank.

“Given the severe terror attacks by Palestinian terror organizations against the civilian population in Israel, particularly in the Tel Aviv area, I instructed the IDF to escalate the counterterrorism efforts in the Tulkarem refugee camp and all the refugee camps in Judea and Samaria,” he stated in a press release, referring to the West Bank by its biblical name.

“We will hunt down the terrorists to the bitter end and destroy the terror infrastructure in the camps used as frontline posts of the Iranian evil axis,” he added.

Israeli politician Benny Gantz said Thursday’s incident “should be treated like a mega-attack.”

“We must not look at the result – but at the intention. We must not repeat the mistake of the attack that was prevented in Megiddo,” he wrote on X. “To the attempt to murder dozens of Israelis on this difficult day – we must respond not only with tactical actions – but by directly intercepting the senders and the senders’ financiers, and using powerful tools against the terrorist nests themselves. We must exact a heavy price that the terrorist organizations will not forget.”