Islamic Jihad Cell Claims Bombing Despite Cease-fire
Israeli police on Tuesday said an explosion that killed a woman on Monday was caused by a Palestinian suicide bomber, the first since major Palestinian factions declared a cease-fire 10 days ago. A West Bank cell of Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility. But the Gaza-based leadership of the militant faction said it was committed to the cease-fire and knew nothing about the claim made in a statement faxed from the West Bank city of Jenin. The blast that leveled a home in the central Israeli town of Yabetz, killing a 65-year-old woman, jarred the truce proclaimed by three major factions in keeping with a U.S.-backed “road map” peace plan. Police spokesman Gil Kleiman said the bomber’s explosive pack apparently went off prematurely in the woman’s home in Yabetz north of Tel Aviv. Full Story