Ten people, including a baby girl, have been killed in the latest suicide bombing in Jerusalem. It was earlier reported that a car had exploded in the Ultra Orthodox central Beit Israel area, but police later said the bombing was a suicide attack.
The Israeli authorities have blamed Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, for the attack, in which dozens were injured. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's spokesman, Raanan Gissin, said that the bombing, which took place as people were leaving Saturday prayers, was aimed at hurting as many people as possible.
The Palestinian Authority has condemned the bombing, and has blamed Israel for the latest surge in violence. Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, linked to Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the attack.
The group also claimed responsibility for the killing of an Israeli policeman in the West Bank this evening. A caller for the group said the acts were in retaliation for the Israeli Army's incursions into refugee camps in the West Bank.
Israeli forces today withdrew to the outskirts of the Palestinian refugee camp of Jenin, which they occupied two days ago. However, troops are continuing to control entry and exit points at the camp.
Israeli troops are still occupying a second, larger camp nearby, at Balata, outside Nablus. The incursions have drawn intense international criticism. The United Nations Human Rights Commissioner, Mary Robinson, condemned them as a violation of international law.
Mrs Robinson expressed dismay at the incursions into the camps of Balata and Jenin and said that the actions led to deaths and injuries of many Palestinians.
Israeli forces have maintained their hold on the refugee camps, despite the international calls to withdraw. Fierce fighting in the area has killed 20 Palestinians and two soldiers.
The two-day-old assault on the crowded camps, both strongholds of Palestinian gunmen, has drawn vows of revenge from militant groups while threatening to derail a new Middle East peace initiative.
