A suspected Palestinian gunman killed three passers-by and wounded at least another 25 in an attack on restaurant patrons at a major intersection in Tel Aviv early on Tuesday, Israeli officials said.
A police spokesman said a "terrorist" fired an assault rifle at two restaurants and a pub in a downtown area favoured by late-night revellers, killing three before being shot dead.
Zacky Heller of the Magen David ambulance service told Israel Radio there were another 25 wounded, three of them in serious condition.
"I saw a man standing by a window and shooting inside. He then threw in two hand grenades which didn't explode," a witness told the radio.
"A guy fired several shots at him (the gunman) and killed him," said another witness.
The radio said a policeman shot the gunman dead, and that police were scouring the area for possible accomplices.
More than 1,200 people have been killed in a Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation now in its 18th month.
(China Daily March 6, 2002)
