Suicide Bomber Targets Israeli Shopping Mall

A suicide bomber blew himself up in an Israeli shopping mall today, killing a bystander and wounding 20 people, including two children, police and medics said.

The blast went off just after 6.15pm (4.15pm GMT) six miles north of Tel Aviv in the town of Kfar Saba, which is just across the border from the West Bank town of Qalqilia.

Israel's Channel 2 television reported that the bomber blew himself up between a restaurant and a shop for electrical appliances in the Arim mall.

One of the 20 injured is in a "serious" condition, medics said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Abdel Aziz Rantisi, a Hamas spokesman, said "the Palestinian people will not stop their resistance until the defeat of the occupation".

David Baker, an official in Ariel Sharon's office, said the attack was "proof that Palestinian terror knows no limits, specializes in cruelty and specifically targets the innocent".

Palestinian militants have frequently targeted the town during the past two years of fighting. A Palestinian gunman opened fire at a pizzeria in Kfar Saba on April 22, killing one Israeli.