Two car bombs have exploded in the central Israeli town , near Tel Aviv, raising tension after a series of clashes between Palestinians and the Israeli army.
Five people were lightly wounded in the first blast, which went off in a car park near a kindergarten.

The blasts follow the deaths of five Palestinians, including a prominent activist from the Hamas militant group, in two separate incidents in the West Bank.

The continuing violence is threatening to undermine the latest Middle East peace plan brokered by the United States, which calls for a seven-day period of calm before moving to the next phase.

'Preventative measure'

Since a truce mediated by the CIA Director George Tenet took effect on 13 June, at least 13 Palestinians and seven Israelis have been killed.

A senior Israeli military official said three people died when an Israeli helicopter gunship attacked the car of Mohammed Besharat near the town of Jenin.

Israeli officials said the air strike was a preventative measure to stop a "terrorist" strike Mr Besharat was planning in Israel.

The incident followed the deaths of two Palestinians - one of them a policeman - in a gun battle with Israeli forces in the same area.

Palestinian spokesman Nabil abu-Rudaynah said that Israel's policy of pinpointed assassination attacks would lead to the collapse of the ceasefire.

The two men who died in the earlier incident were also linked to Hamas. According to the Israeli military, they had been planning to plant a roadside bomb near a military base.