Deadly Bombing at Israeli Beach

T E L   A V I V, Israel, June 1 -- A suicide bomber killed at least 17 people in an attack on a Tel Aviv waterfront crowded with people enjoying the nightlife, Israeli police said.

Local media reports said the bomb exploded at about 11:40 p.m. local time in front of the nightclub Apacha, not far from the Dolphinarium, or "Dolphin Club," a well-known aquarium.

At least 74 people were injured, including 11 who were in critical condition, according to television reports.

It was the start of the Sabbath, and the popular area near Tel Aviv's hotel district was packed with young people.The dead were all described as 18 to 20 years old.

Crowds of fashionable and stylishly coifed youths, shocked by the explosion, wandered around in a daze as emergency personnel in orange-and-silver reflective vests scurried to attend to victims.

They wheeled the bloodied bodies on stretchers to more than 30 ambulances, congesting the area already crowded with traffic. The victims were being taken to four different hospitals in Tel Aviv, media reports said.

Fearful of follow-up attacks, police converged on the area in search of more bombers.

In a statement from Camp David, President Bush condemned the bombing and called on Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for an end to the violence.

"I condemn in the strongest terms the heinous terrorist attack in Tel Avivthis Sabbath evening," Bush said. "This illustrates the urgent need for animmediate, unconditional cessation of violence. I call upon ChairmanArafat to condemn this act and to call for an immediate cease-fire.Mydeepest condolences and those of the American people go out to the victimsand their families."

Israeli Forces on High Alert

There was no word on who carried out the attack, but in the past several months of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Islamic militants have detonated more than a dozen bombs.

The Islamic militant group Hamas has said it would carry out at least 10 suicide bombings in response to the election of Ariel Sharon, a well-known hawk, to Israel's office of prime minister. Hamas has so far claimed responsibility for eight.