5 dead, 30 wounded in attack on wedding hall in northern Israel

Associated Press WriterJERUSALEM (AP) -- A Palestinian tossed hand grenades into a wedding hall in northern Israel on Friday, and five people were killed and more than 30 wounded, Israeli police said.

Army radio said the Palestinian tried to detonate explosives attached to his body at the entrance to the hall, but they did not go off.

The attacker then threw grenades into the crowd, said Haim Dominovsky, spokesman for police in northern Israel.

"A terrorist went into the wedding hall and threw grenades," Dominovsky said.

He said the attacker was among the five dead. It was not immediately known how he died.

A belt filled with explosives was found on the attacker, and police were trying to defuse it, army radio said.

The attack took place in the city of Hadera, in northern Israel. The city, which is located near the line separating Israel from the West Bank, has been the scene of several Palestinian bombings in recent months.

On Nov. 29, a Palestinian suicide bomber set off explosives strapped to his body on a bus on main highway near Hadera, killing himself and three Israeli passengers. The militant Islamic Jihad group later claimed responsibility for the blast.

Israel renewed its blockade of several Palestinian towns in the West Bank on Thursday following the killings of three civilians by Palestinian gunmen. In the West Bank, a Palestinian militia leader died Thursday in an exchange of fire with Israeli troops.

This week's violence came after a lull in fighting that followed Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's announcement of a cease-fire in December.