Netanyahu orders West Bank military operation after Israel bus blasts

No casualties were reported and there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blasts, which occurred when explosive devices planted on the empty vehicles detonated in quick succession in the cities of Bat Yam and Holon, south of Israel’s financial center.

In Bat Yam, two bombs exploded on buses parked in a depot, authorities said. A third blast was reported in Holon from an explosive device planted on a third bus.

Photos from Bat Yam showed two burned out buses in the depot and forensics personnel working at the scene.

Meanwhile, an explosive device that did not detonate was discovered on a fourth bus, police said.

Israel stepped up security and halted bus and train operations across the country following the blasts, which a statement from Netanyahu’s office called an “attempt to perpetrate a chain of mass bus bombings.”

After meeting with the defense minister, the head of the Israel Defense Forces and top security and police officials, Netanyahu “ordered the IDF to carry out an intensive operation against centers of terrorism,” in the West Bank, according to the statement.