Military

DATE=06/05/02

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS (L-UPD)

NUMBER=2-290545

BYLINE=MEREDITH BUEL

DATELINE=JERUSALEM

CONTENT=

VOICE AT:

///// UPDATES CR 2-290538 /////

INTRO: A Palestinian suicide bomber has detonated a car packed with explosives next to a crowded Israeli bus. As Correspondent Meredith Buel reports from Jerusalem, at least 16-people were killed and dozens of others were injured in the blast.

TEXT: An Islamic militant ignited a massive fireball by detonating explosives in his car alongside a bus near the northern Israeli town of Megiddo.

Police say the bus burst into flames after the blast. Witnesses say some passengers were trapped alive inside the burning bus.

Body parts and the personal belongings of passengers were scattered in a wide radius. Chunks of mangled metal are all that remain of the car bomb and the bus.

Megiddo is just a few kilometers from the West Bank and many suicide bombers have come from that area.

The militant group Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was meant to coincide with the 35th anniversary of the 1967 Middle East War.

Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem during the war, areas the Palestinians want for a possible future state.

An Israeli government spokesman blamed Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for the bombing, saying he has done nothing to stop terrorist acts against Israelis.

Hours after the explosion, Israeli tanks, backed by combat helicopters, rolled into the West Bank town of Jenin. Witnesses reported attack helicopters fired machined guns toward one neighborhood.

Jenin is a stronghold of Palestinian militants and has been the target of repeated Israeli raids in recent months.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Arye Mekel says Israel will continue launching military raids in the West Bank to track down militants.

/// MEKEL ACT ///

There is no immunity for terrorism. We go after them even if they are in the Palestinian territories. We arrest them. We try to bring them to justice. This will certainly continue. It is going on, on an ongoing basis, since Arafat and the Palestinian Authority are doing nothing to stop these terrorists from acting we have to do it ourselves.

/// END ACT ///

In a statement, the Palestinian Authority condemned Wednesday's bombing, saying it has no connection to the attack.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon met with senior cabinet ministers to discuss a possible response to the bombing. (SIGNED)

NEB/MB/KL/RAE