January 6, 2003	Monday	Ziqa’ad 2, 1423

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TEL AVIV, Jan 5: Two Palestinian suicide bombers killed 19 other people when they blew themselves to pieces in downtown Tel Aviv during the evening rush hour on Sunday.

Another 100 people were wounded in the blasts near the a bus station, a poor area heavily populated by immigrant workers.

The bodies of the two suicide bombers were destroyed by the powerful explosives they were carrying.

The blasts took place in parallel streets close to the bus station.

“To my sorrow there are deaths,” he said. “It seems according to evidence in the area that we are talking of two suicide bombers.”

Alon Oz, an eyewitness, told Army radio: “I heard the explosion, I felt the shockwave. I realized there would be many casualties. We looked for people who were breathing. I called over to them. I counted quite a few seriously wounded. People were lying there.”

People were sprawled on the streets. Some appeared to be dead, while others were nursing wounds to arms and legs.

Witnesses said there was extensive destruction of nearby buildings and even some people inside houses and shops were among the wounded. Sunday’s blasts occurred in quick succession near the old Tel Aviv bus station and a nearby pedestrian mall in the coastal city.

Islamic Jihad: A Lebanon-based TV station said Islamic Jihad had claimed responsibility for the explosions, but an official in the Palestinian militant group said there had been no official statement.—Reuters