Bus explosion in Israel. Photo Credit Facebook Stand With Us
Three buses have exploded in Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv and two other buses were found with unexploded devices.
There were no casualties in the attack but Israeli police are considering it a “suspected terror attack”. It is suggested that three buses detonated at the wrong time. The Israeli reaction has been swift, with Israeli’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordering his forces “to increase preventative activity against additional attacks in Israeli cities.” As well as this, Israel’s Transport Minister Miri Regev, cut a visit to Morocco short in the wake of the attack and stopped multiple modes of transport including buses across the country whilst they were checked for more explosive devices.
One of the unexploded devices found on the buses contained a message “revenge for Tulkarem.” Tulkarem is a city in the Palestinian West Bank. As a result, Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered an intensification of operations “against centres of terrorism” in the West Bank. Although he has already been dismantling homes in the area.
Operation Iron Wall has been affecting homes in Tulkarem
The revenge for Tulkarem message comes after multiple weeks of Israeli campaigns in the Westbank, which they are calling Operation Iron Wall. It has displaced 40,000 people from the area. While the eyes of the world have focused on Gaza and hostage exchanges between Hamas and Israel, Isreali forces have been working on the military campaign, which has seen both airstrikes and the demolition of buildings purportedly in the name of counter-terrorism. The governor of Tulkarem where buildings were pulled down earlier in the week has said “The Israeli military are doing this under pretext of security and fighting terrorism.” he went on to say it was “purely political”. Israel’s Operation Iron Wall started just days after the ceasefire in Gaza.
No one has owned up to the bus explosions so far
There has been no mention of who organised the attacks at this time. Public perception rightly or wrongly has been influenced by the tensions between Hamas and Israel after the first group of dead hostages were returned to Israel from Gaza via the Red Cross and the IDF. The bodies of two children and their mother were part of the exchange but Israel says after doing tests the body of Mother Shiri Silberman Bibas is not one of those that has been returned. Israel appears to be treating this as an intentional action by Hamas to breach the ceasefire.
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