Six dead in apparent suicide bombing including one-year-old child

An apparent suicide bomber has killed at least six people, including a year-old child and wounded more than 30 others in an ultra-Orthodox neighbourhood in Jerusalem.

Police originally thought the blast had been a car bomb and hosed down a burning car but later said it appeared a suicide bomber had approached a group of people.

The blast occurred as observant Jews were leaving synagogues at the end of the sabbath, which runs from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday.

"I came right out (on the street) and saw a car on fire, the building next to it was also on fire," said witness Yitzhak Weinberger.

In addition to the attacker, at least six people were killed, including a 1-year-old child, said Jerusalem police chief Mickey Levy.

"This has nothing to do with warfare, this nothing to do with national liberation, this has to do with the murder of innocent Jews, coming back from their evening prayers," said Israeli government spokesman Dore Gold. "The state of Israel knows how to defend the people of Israel, and will do so."

Palestinians have expressed outrage at Israel's military incursion into two West Bank refugee camps over the past three days, and Palestinian militants had vowed to respond with attacks.

Israeli troops have captured suspected Palestinian militants and uncovered rockets and explosives during three days of house-to-house searches in the densely packed Balata refugee camp, next to Nablus, in the West Bank, the army said.

Palestinian youths began throwing stones at soldiers in the Balata camp on Saturday afternoon, and an 18-year-old Palestinian was shot dead by the soldiers, Palestinian officials said.

In the Gaza Strip, a 27-year-old Palestinian attempting to plant a bomb was shot and killed early on Saturday when Israeli tanks fired rounds near the town of Beit Hanoun. The Israeli army and the militant Islamic group Hamas both said afterward that the man was trying to attack Israelis.