Jerusalem: In a setback to the fledgling Middle East peace process, at least ten Israelis have been killed and twenty wounded in a double suicide attack at the port of the Southern city of Ashdod, prompting Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to cancel a proposed meeting with his Palestinian counterpart Ahmed Qureia.

One of the two bombers exploded just outside the main gate to the port at around 5 hrs (IST) today (Mar 14, 2004) while the second managed to enter the facility and detonated his bomb a while later in a centrally located workshop inside the port.

Southern region police chief, Moshe Karadi, said that the bombers were using a different type of bomb than usual and may have been trying to blow themselves up next to tanks of bromide or other dangerous chemicals stored in the port, causing far greater casualties.

"They might have exploded prematurely. It may be that they had an accident before they reached the intended target," he said.

The attack, the first on a strategic installation in three years, has led to police raising the level of alert across the country.

Fatah and Iz-a-Din al-Kassam, Hamas' military wings have jointly claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement to Hezbollah television station Al-Manar, local media reported.

Al-Manar identified the two suicide bombers as Nabil Saoud and Mohammed Salem, both from the Jabalya refugee camp in the Gaza strip.

Shortly after the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon called of a planned meeting with his Palestinian counterpart, Ahmed Qureia. The meeting was tentatively scheduled for Tuesday (Mar 16, 2004).

Israel Defence Forces (IDF) officials believe that the terrorists involved in the attack came from Gaza Strip. Shin Bet and IDF officials are also looking into the possibility of how the suicide bombers infiltrated into Israel through the fence surrounding the Gaza Strip.

Eight teams of fire fighters reached the scene of the blast, as did a number of police officers and Magen David Adom emergency medical workers to evacuate casualties for which helicopters were also employed.

Palestinian authority condemned the bombings and urged Palestinians to stop such attacks immediately.

It was the first attack of its kind at an Israeli seaport since fighting broke out in September 2000 though there have been other attempts on vital Israeli installations.

Port worker Sami Pinto said that when he entered the port, he saw smoke from the explosions near the fence of the facility and one in a workshop inside the port.

"Five bodies of our workers were lying there and two more bodies outside the fence," he told Army radio.

"One of our workers who was lightly wounded told me that the terrorist came in and asked for water and the moment he showed him where there was a tap he blew up," Pinto added.

The Palestinian Authority also urged Israel to commit itself to a ceasefire "to break the cycle of violence" and to implement US backed "road map" for peace in the Middle East.

Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin said the bombings were "a response to the Israeli crimes against our people," and that such attacks would continue until Israel withdraws from Gaza.