TEL AVIV, ISRAEL, 1999 FEB 7 (BBC) --  At 11:00 AM this morning, the
Central Railway Station in Tel Aviv was obliterated by a massive blast.
The blast also destroyed a nearby highway and damaged buildings within
half a kilometer, including two heavily populated residential areas.
The blast is believed to have been an extremely powerful car bomb
planted near the railway station.

Rescue workers have already found over two hundred dead, with many more
injured.  Official estimates project that the final body count may
reach one thousand dead.

When questioned, Public Security Minister Avigdor Kahalani said Israel
must continue reprisal raids against infrastructure in Lebanon:

  "As long as Jewish families lose their sons, there is no reason why
  there should be 'business as usual' in Beirut and why they should
  enjoy the regular supply of electricity.  The Lebanese government is
  in a position to stop these atrocities, yet refuses to aid us."