JERUSALEM, Jan 15 — A man wounded at least 19 people, one of them critically, in a stabbing and car-ramming attack in the central Israeli city of Raanana today, Israeli media said, adding that residents had been instructed to stay off the streets.

Citing witnesses, Army Radio said the incident may have been a car-jacking during which the stolen vehicle crashed.

The incident came amid heightened security tensions over Israel’s war with Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza. Eli Levy, police spokesperson, told Army Radio: "We still cannot declare with certainty that this was a terrorist attack.”

He said he it was also unclear how many people had been involved in the incident, leaving open the possibility that suspects were still at large. — Reuters