Suicide bomber hits Tel Aviv

A bomber set off an explosion in a crowded Tel Aviv shopping mall today, killing himself and wounding 24 bystanders. Two are reported to be in a serious condition.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. However, the attack came just hours after the Islamic militant group Hamas said it would avenge a senior commander killed in an Israeli missile attack in the Gaza Strip on Thursday.

The bomber detonated explosives strapped to his body at 11:16 a.m. (0916 GMT) in a pedestrian mall near the abandoned old bus station in Tel Aviv, an area filled with ethnic restaurants, small groceries and sidewalk pubs catering mainly to foreign workers.It was the first suicide bombing in Israel since 2 December.

The force of the explosion overturned wooden benches of a sidewalk cafe, shattered shop windows and scattered papers across the sidewalk.

Israel's Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, is to visit the United States for talks with Bush on 7 February. It would be his fourth meeting with Bush, who has not yet invited Arafat.