For the second time in eighteen hours, Palestinian bombs failed to cause significant casualties in Tel Aviv. An alert security guard shot the attacker, who then detonated his charge near the entrance of a disco at 1 am Friday morning. The Arafat-led Fatah Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades took credit for the blast, which injured 3 Israelis lightly. Hot warnings of imminent bombing attacks continued.

Some eyewitnesses reported that the bomber tried to detonate his bomb near the door of the disco, where young people were waiting to enter. The guard, Eli Federman, suspected the bomber, and shot him before he could enter the club.

In an interview with Israel Radio, Federman

"We are facing waves of suicide bombers" - Israeli Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer

said he became suspicious when the bomber's car veered violently toward the "Studio 49" club, endangering the people at the entrance. "It was clear he was... at least attempting to run them over," he said. "It was clear he was going to blow himself up."

Federman said that with one hand he pushed three guests to the ground, and with the other pulled out his gun and shot the terrorist once, after which the bomber fell out of the car and detonated the bomb. No one was in close proximity to the car, and therefore only three people were injured. Federman then shot several additional bullets at the terrorist's head, killing him.

ynet reports that Federman is the brother of Noam Federman, a right wing activist currently under arrest for suspected involvement in anti-Arab attacks.

Internal Security Minister Uzi Landau and Police Inspector-General Shlomo Aharonishky commended Federman on his heroic conduct, Israel Radio reported.

A faction of Yasser Arafat's Fatah organization claimed credit for the attack, which was carried out by a youth from El-Bireh, near Ramallah. "The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades has carried out the remarkable, heroic martyrdom operation in the heart of Tel Aviv this morning, in which a seeker of martyrdom blew up his pristine body, leading to casualties in the ranks of the enemy," the group said in a statement. It said the attack was in revenge for Israel's killing of three terrorists in the Balata refugee camp earlier in the week.

However, Israel Radio reported that a pamphlet circulated by Fatah on Friday rejected the statement, calling the claim of credit by al-Aqsa Brigades "misleading" and in defiance of the orders of PA Chairman Yasser Arafat, the organization's only spokesman.

Channel Two Arab Affairs analyst Ehud Ya'ari commented Thursday evening on the "amazing" phenomenon of Fatah factions carrying out terror attacks while the main organization, led by Arafat, is condemning the attacks. Ya'ari said the contradiction was not just the usual duplicity but reflected for the first time a genuine debate, especially among Palestinian intellectuals, about the efficacy of suicide bombing as a weapon.

"Scores of Israeli teens nearly fell victim to a horrific Palestinian terror attack in Tel Aviv," said David Baker, an official in Prime Minister Ariel Sharon 's office. "The Palestinian Authority continues to refuse to rein in the murderous terror elements under its control and we saw the results in Tel Aviv last night," he said.

Palestinians seeking mega-attacks that kill thousands
Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer warned of a deluge of Palestinian bombing attempts on the way. "We are facing waves of suicide bombers, men and women, and believe me that when I say waves I know what I'm talking about," Ben-Eliezer said.

Ben-Eliezer's warning followed an attempt by Palestinian terrorists to blow up the giant Pi Glilot fuel depot. Security officials said that tens of thousands could have been killed if the explosion of a fuel truck had triggered a chain reaction, igniting petroleum and gas tanks. The resulting fireball, they say, would have caused total destruction in the surrounding area, which includes a country club and apartments in Tel Aviv's posh Ramat Aviv Gimel neighborhood.

The attack was another attempt by Palestinian organizations, led by Arafat's Fatah organization, to carry out massive-scale strategic strikes that could cause thousands of casualties and precipitate a regional war. Last week, Israeli army raids in Tulkarm revealed a plot to use a ton of explosives to destroy a skyscraper, and plans to execute seven simultaneous attacks in Israeli coastal cities.

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