Alert level raised after foiled bombing

      The Israel Security Service (Shin Bet) and police have been tasked with investigating Saturday's thwarted attack in Haifa. ‏Following the incident, police raised the level of alert in the northern district. The so-called "Free Galilee" terror group claimed responsibility for the attempted attack. The commmander of the northern district police, Shimon Koren, said the explosives hidden in a parked vehicle only partially detonated. After being alerted by an employee of the shopping center who reported hearing an explosion, police sappers were dispatched to scan the parking area. The sappers found a partially exploded bomb in the trunk of a white Subaru car which was parked outside the shopping center. ‏A further search of the vehicle uncovered several more unexploded bombs, which were neutralized by the sappers.Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says disaster was narrowly averted Saturday night when a car bombing was thwarted at Haifa's Lev Hamifratz shopping mall. Speaking at the start of Sunday's weekly cabinet meeting, Olmert ‏said that as far as Israel is concerned, this was a terrorist attack in every sense. The prime minister told the ministers that the initial inquiry into the aborted bombing points to a sophisticated terrorist infrastructure functioning in order to carry out a massive attack claiming many victims. He said that Judea and Samaria serves as one of the central launching bases for terrorist activity and Hamas is trying bolster itself there. Olmert noted that in the days leading up to the Passover holiday, terrorist groups will no doubt try to disrupt life in Israel. Olmert said Israel's security forces will be on a maximum state of alert. He also called on civilians to be alert and cautious. The prime minister expressed deep appreciation for the work of security forces who succeed in foiling such attacks. (13,41)