Three buses explode in Israel in suspected terror attack, police say

Three buses have exploded in Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv, in what Israeli police say is a suspected terror attack.

Devices in two other buses failed to explode, they said, adding that “large police forces are at the scenes, searching for suspects”.

Transport Minister Miri Regev paused all buses, trains and light rail trains in the country so that checks for explosive devices could be carried out, Israeli media reports said.

Footage on social media shows at least one bus on fire in a parking lot, with a large plume of smoke rising above.

There have been no reports of casualties at this stage, police said.

Police spokesperson Aryeh Doron said the “event is ongoing”, with officers still trying to locate more bombs in Tel Aviv.

“Our forces are still scouring the area,” Doron told Channel 12, adding that the public must be on alert for “every suspected bag or object”.

“We may be lucky if indeed the terrorists set these timers to the wrong hour. But it’s too early to determine,” he said.

According to local media, one of the unexploded devices, weighing 5kg, carried a message saying “Revenge from Tulkarem” – referring to a recent Israeli military counter-terrorism operation in the West Bank.

In response to the incidents in Bat Yam, Defence Minister Israel Katz said he had instructed the military to “increase the intensity” of activity in refugee camps in the West Bank.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was being updated on the situation, his office said in a statement.

The Kan public broadcaster reports that Transport Minister Miri Regev has cut short her trip to Morocco and will return to Israel.