JERUSALEM - Two buses exploded almost simultaneously in southern Israel today, killing at least 11 people and wounding more than 20 in the first major Palestinian attack inside Israel in nearly six months, rescue officials said.

It was not clear whether the explosions were set off by suicide bombers. The buses went up in flames near a main intersection in the center of Beersheba, the largest city in southern Israel, 25 miles west of Gaza City.

No one claimed responsibility for the blasts, but Israel Radio said Palestinian attackers had carried out the attacks.

Israel TV showed images of the two burned-out buses, with flames shooting through the roof of one of the vehicles. At least two bodies, covered in white sheets, lay on the ground nearby.

Palestinian militants haven't carried out a major attack inside Israel since March 14, when 11 people were killed in the port of Ashdod. The attack prompted Israel to assassinate the spiritual leader of the Hamas militant group in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian Cabinet Minister Saeb Erekat said "the Palestinian Authority condemns any attacks that target civilians, whether Israelis or Palestinian."

Earlier today, the Israeli army caught a Palestinian man strapped with explosives as he tried to cross into Israel from the Gaza Strip.