This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – South Tel Aviv was rocked by an explosion Sunday night in what police and the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) have now confirmed was an attempted terrorist attack involving "a powerful explosive device."
The incident took place at around 8 p.m. and the terrorist – who has yet to be named – is thought to be a 50-year-old man from the Samarian city of Nablus (known as Shechem in Hebrew). Sitting between the twin peaks of Mounts Gerizim and Ebal, the town is thought to be some 4,000 years old and is the site of Joseph's Tomb, after the Israelites returned his bones from Egypt and interred him in the Holy Land.
The terrorist – who is thought to have had an accomplice who transported him to Tel Aviv – was captured on CCTV wearing a backpack and walking past stores crowded with shoppers, and it was a miracle the only person wounded in the botched attack was a 33-year-old passerby riding on an electric scooter, who escaped with moderate injuries.
Ayalon District Police Commander Haim Bublil told Kan News Radio "it is possible the assailant planned to reach the nearby synagogue or perhaps the shopping center. We have no ability to understand why [the bomb] exploded at this point in time."
He added if the bomber had done so there would likely have been a scene of carnage with dozens of people either killed or wounded. Meanwhile, one worshiper at the synagogue said he decided to enter the building to participate in evening prayers at the last moment and would have been on the street in the radius of the blast if he had not decided to do so.
The Israel Police have requested Tel Avivians remain vigilant and are concerned about the prospect of potential copycat attacks. Hamas took responsibility for the attempted attack, saying it worked in collaboration with PIJ and threatened to carry out more.
Judea and Samaria is growing increasingly restive as different militant Arab factions squabble for supremacy in the region. Hamas, for example, has grown in influence and popularity, especially since Oct. 7.
