Two Israeli women were killed, and a third is seriously ill, in a Palestinian attack on fire in the Jordan Valley in the West Bank.
The Israeli army and the emergency services said so.
The police added that "the terrorist has fled and is currently wanted".
At first it was thought to be a road accident but then bullet holes were found in the bodywork of the car.
Overnight, Israel launched a series of air and artillery strikes against Palestinian targets in Gaza and southern Lebanon.
An Israeli military spokesman specified that more than 10 Hamas sites were hit in Gaza, while three targets were hit in southern Lebanon.
According to the same source, Hamas fired 44 rockets at Israel from Gaza.
One, he added, hit a house in Sderot but without casualties: 14 fell in an open area, 8 were intercepted, 12 fell into the sea and 9 inside the Strip.
The army has instructed residents around the Strip to remain in shelters until further notice.
The bombing of the Israeli air force on the Gaza Strip
For its part, the Palestinian news agency Maan reported that in last night's attacks by the Israeli air force several "resistance" sites were hit, including bases of armed factions and observation posts, some of which are located in Khan Yunes, in the southern Gaza Strip.
Local sources add that in the Sajaya district a building collapsed: possibly because it was located near a tunnel.
The attacks, Maan added, also targeted two open areas in the Gaza Strip (at Beit Hanun and al-Zaytun).
These would be the areas where, according to Israel, Hamas military tunnels were located.
There were no casualties in these attacks.
During the night several formations announced that they had taken part in the fighting.
The armed wing of Hamas announced among other things that it had directed fire at Israeli aircraft involved in the bombing.
The military wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine announced that it had fired a volley of rockets at the nearby Israeli kibbutz of Nativ ha-Assara.
In the meantime, according to local media, the political leadership of Hamas is following developments from Beirut.
Yesterday its boss Ismail Haniyeh and his deputy Sallah al-Aruri had a meeting
with various exponents, including the leader of Islamic Jihad Ziad Nahale.
Lebanon and Israel "do not want a war", assured today the United Nations Interposition Force in Lebanon (Unifil) after contacts between the two sides.
Peacekeepers have called on "all parties to cease all action" on both sides of the border following Israeli attacks on Lebanon that followed rocket fire at the Jewish state.
Defense Minister Guido Crosetto - who has arrived in Lebanon for a series of institutional meetings and to celebrate Good Friday together with the Italian contingent - met today with the commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces, Joseph Aoun, to whom he assured that "the Lebanese Armed Forces they are fundamental for stability and security. Italy will continue to provide its support in bilateral relations and in the UNIFIL area".
Yesterday Crosetto met with the Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati, in a meeting in which he underlined how "Lebanon is a fundamental junction for regional stability and for the entire Mediterranean".
Referring to the escalation of tension on the border with Israel, the defense minister said that "in these difficult times, even greater commitment is needed for regional peace and security so that the situation does not escalate".
