Israeli police claimed Monday that a “powerful” explosion in Tel Aviv the night before was a “terror attack” that injured one person and triggered a heightened alert.
“This was a terror attack involving the explosion of a powerful explosive,” the force said in a statement.
On Sunday authorities reported that the blast in the commercial hub of Tel Aviv had killed one person, who Israeli media said was the suspected assailant.
“As a result of the explosion, a passerby was moderately injured,” the police said, adding that authorities had ordered “an increase in alert levels and extensive searches throughout the greater Tel Aviv area”.
The incident occurred late on Sunday, shortly after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Tel Aviv to press for a truce in Gaza after more than ten months of conflict, and as fears mount of a larger, regional conflagration.
Blinken, on his eleventh regional journey since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other key Israeli officials.