Britons Among 18 Injured By Prague Blast

The Czech authorities are working on the theory that a bomb in the heart of Prague which injured 18 people yesterday, including five tourists from Britain and Ireland, was intended as an attack on an Israeli-owned casino.

The prime minister, Stanislav Gross, toured the area after the explosion and dismissed fears that it was linked to terrorism. It was, he said in a radio interview, "a case of gangs settling accounts".

The target was believed to be the Royal Casino on Na Prikope, a busy street popular with tourists.

Many of the injured were visitors from abroad. None of their injuries was thought to be life-threatening. One of the victims was a child.

Two Britons and three Irish tourists were among those caught in the explosion, which happened at about 12.30pm on Sunday. They were taken to the Motole hospital.

One of the Britons is understood to have been hit in the neck by shrapnel. His injury was said to be serious but his condition was described as stable. His girlfriend was struck in the hand. Both are in their early 20s.

The three Irish people were discharged from hospital last night, according to the Irish department of foreign affairs.

None of the five - two women and three men - was identified by their governments yesterday.

"British embassy officials went to the scene of the explosion and then to the local hospital," the Foreign Office said. Relatives were being informed.

Initial reports suggested that the explosion was caused by at least one hand grenade being rolled under what may have been a parked armoured car. It was not clear whether it was part of an attempted robbery ora gangland feud.

The Czech police said: "We can rule out that it was a terrorist attack. It was a criminal act." The incident was being treated as attempted murder.

Gambling is banned in Israel and a lucrative trade has grown up flying Israeli customers to newly established casinos in central and eastern Europe. Gangs often fight for control of the business.

In August 2002 a Tel Aviv casino owner, Felix Abutbul, was shot in Prague. His floating casino off the Israeli port of Eilat was subsequently raided by the Israeli police. The Royal Casino in Prague was formerly owned by Mr Abutbul.

An Israeli lawyer for the current owner, Assi Abutbul, told Israeli army radio that his client had been in a vehicle when Sunday's attack occurred, but had not been hurt, because the vehicle was armoured. The lawyer, Tsion Amir, said that Assi Abutbul had told him that his would-be assailants appeared to be Thai.

The Czech police have been on high alert for many months, fearing that the country could become a target for attack by al-Qaida.

The former communist state has been a member of Nato since 1999, and sent about 90 soldiers to Iraq as part of the US-led coalition.

Israel's police chief, Moshe Karady, told Israeli army radio yesterday that there was a connection between the attack and crime groups of interest to the Israeli police.