Woman killed in suicide blast near Israeli nuclear plant

A Palestinian suicide bomber blew himself up next to Israel’s fortified nuclear reactor, killing a woman and wounding 11 people in the first such attack in more than a year.

Police shot dead a second suicide attacker before he detonated his bomb.

Yesterday’s attack in Dimona fuelled Israel’s fears that Gaza militants would exploit a recent border breach with Egypt to sneak into Israel.

The militants behind the attack claimed they had entered Israel through the Egyptian border, about 35 miles from the town, though Israeli police said they were still investigating.

An offshoot of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement in the Gaza Strip claimed responsibility and vowed further attacks, threatening to complicate recently revived peace talks.

A member of the splinter group said they did not work under President Abbas’ influence.

President Abbas condemned the violence from his West Bank stronghold. But in the Gaza Strip, gunmen fired in the air and relatives of the bombers passed out sweets to celebrate the bombing.

Israeli officials said peace talks with President Abbas would continue, but vowed to push forward with the country’s military campaign in Gaza, which is controlled by the violent Islamic Hamas.

Hours after the bombing, an Israeli aircraft attacked a car in northern Gaza, killing a senior militant who was involved in rocket attacks on Israel.

Speaking to parliament, prime minister Ehud Olmert said Israel was facing a “constant war” against Gaza militants. “This war will continue. Terrorism will be hit. We will not relent,” he said.

While Palestinian militants have carried out dozens of suicide bombings since 2000, yesterday’s attack was the first on Dimona, a working-class town with a population of 37,000 next to Israel’s nuclear reactor. The explosion took place in a shopping area about six miles from the facility.

Israeli officials dismissed suggestions that the reactor might have been targeted. The facility, where atomic weapons are believed to have been developed, is heavily guarded, enclosed by a 10ft barbed-wire fence and 1.5 miles down a road closed to the public. Israel neither admits nor denies having nuclear arms.

“There was a great explosion and a great ball of fire came toward me,” said David Dahan, who was wounded in the blast.

“I saw him (the bomber) fall. I was hit, but I held on to my walking stick ... My clothes were covered with his flesh.”

Dr Michael Sherf, the director of Soroka Medical Centre in Beersheba, where the wounded were taken, said nine people were hurt. Israel media reported later that 11 were wounded.

A second suicide bomber was injured in the blast before he could set off his bomb. TV footage showed police shooting the man as he lay on the pavement, slowly moving his hand towards his midsection. A police bomb squad defused the explosives.

Dr Baruch Mandelzweig discovered the second attacker after rushing to the scene from his nearby clinic to treat the wounded. He said he spotted a critically-injured man whose head was moving, and opened his shirt to treat him.

“We saw an explosive belt,” he said. “We ran away.”

Then police officer Kobi Mor took over. He rushed to the scene, where he said he found the bomber fluttering on the pavement with his explosive belt visible.

“The minute I saw him move his hand toward the belt, I fired and his hand fell,” he told Channel 10 TV. “Two and a half minutes later he lifted his hand again, again towards the belt, and I knelt down and fired four bullets to the centre of his head.”

Israeli TV stations broadcast the footage repeatedly, calling Mr Mor the “hero of the day.” Police awarded him a special certificate for his act of bravery and gave him a promotion.

Israeli authorities had been on high alert since Hamas militants blew up large sections of the Gaza-Egypt border wall on January 23. The border breach, aimed at easing an Israeli and Egyptian blockade of Gaza, allowed hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to cross into Egypt unchecked.

Egypt managed to reseal the border only on Sunday.

Israel’s 150-mile desert border with Egypt is mostly open, with few obstacles. In contrast, a large fence complex separates Gaza from Israel.