Eight killed in Israeli bus assault

A Palestinian rammed a bus into a crowded bus stop used by Israeli soldiers and civilians south of Tel Aviv today, killing eight people and injuring at least 10, Israeli police said.

The attack was the bloodiest inside Israel since the start of a Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in late September.

"We are speaking of a serious terrorist attack with a lot of wounded and dead," Tel Aviv police chief Yossi Sitbom said.

Israeli officials said it could be a response to an Israeli helicopter strike that killed a member of Palestinan President Yasser Arafat's elite security force in Gaza on Tuesday, for which Palestinians vowed revenge.

Violence has worsened after a relative lull since the rightist Ariel Sharon, seen by some Arabs as a war criminal, was elected prime minister last week. Sharon criticised the attack and vowed to provide security when he takes over as premier.

Ahmed Abdel-Rahman, an aide to Arafat, said Israel and outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Barak must take the blame for the attack because "violence only begets violence".

The bus sped off after slamming into the queue near the city of Holon in the morning rush hour. Police gave chase until the vehicle collided with a truck and they fired shots. Police said the driver was seriously wounded.

Israeli Police Chief Shlomo Aharonishky told Israel Radio the driver was a Palestinian from the Gaza Strip.

The bus belonged to the Egged bus company, which confirmed that Palestinians drive such buses.

Almost 400 people have been killed in clashes during the nearly five months of a Palestinian uprising. More than 300 of the death have been Palestinians. Sixty-one of those killed were Israelis and 13 were Israeli Arabs.

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