Highway 73 closed and police investigating possible criminal motive amid wave of vehicular bombings in Israel.

A powerful explosion ripped through a vehicle at the Nahalal Junction on Highway 73 in northern Israel's Jezreel Valley this afternoon, killing a woman inside the car and sending shockwaves through the quiet agricultural community. Two passersby suffered minor injuries from flying debris but declined medical treatment, authorities said.

The blast triggered a massive emergency response, with firefighters from the Nof HaGalil station battling flames engulfing the mangled vehicle while Magen David Adom (MDA) paramedics pronounced the unidentified woman dead at the scene.