Israel Police Believe Tel Aviv Blast Was Almost Certainly a Failed Terror Attack

The man carrying the backpack that exploded in Tel Aviv was a Palestinian from Judea and Samaria.

By JNS

Police have determined that a deadly bombing in South Tel Aviv on Sunday night was a failed terrorist attack and that the man carrying the bomb in his backpack who was killed in the blast was a Palestinian from Judea and Samaria.

Authorities are now investigating whether the explosion was deliberate or if the bomb was accidentally triggered before the terrorist reached his target.

A local police commander said earlier Monday that it is “99%” certain that the explosion was a failed terrorist attack, calling it a “miracle” that there were not mass casualties.

Ayalon District Police Commander Haim Bublil told Kan News Radio that “it is possible that 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.”

According to reports, an explosive device went off on Lehi Road near a truck around 8 p.m. As a result of the blast, a man around the age of 50 carrying the bomb in his backpack was killed and a 33-year-old man passing by on an electric scooter was moderately wounded.

Paramedics declared the bomb-carrier dead at the scene, and the wounded man was taken to a local hospital.

“The scene here speaks for itself, it is a powerful charge that could have caused significant damage. We are in a kind of miracle that the incident did not end in dozens of deaths,” said Bublil.

The Israel Security Agency internal security service is involved in the investigation into the incident.

Police spokesman Eli Levy also confirmed to Kan News that there is a high probably the incident was an attempted terrorist attack.

“A great miracle happened here. It’s a very serious incident that was investigated by the police and the ISA, ” he said.