Rescue teams were quoted by Israel Radio as saying that a blast rattled the northern Israeli town of Hadera on Wednesday, causing some 20 casualties.

The blast, which occurred Wednesday afternoon in a market place, was triggered by a Palestinian suicide bomber, the radio said.

The radio said it was not clear whether the explosion was linked to Islamic Jihad, which has resumed rocket fire against Israeli targets in reprisal for the killing of a senior Jihad leader in the West Bank.

The blast came shortly after three people were killed in a suspected gas explosion in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv.

Source: Xinhua