At least three people have been injured in a major car bomb blast in Tel Aviv, the capital of the Israeli occupied Palestinian territories.

Israeli media said on Monday that the car bomb occurred in Tel Aviv’s Rishon LeZion, critically wounding three people.

Reports said medical teams and security forces rushed to the scene of the blast while an immediate investigation was launched into the explosion.

It was not clear whether the blast was related to the ongoing wave of violence in the occupied West Bank where Palestinians have been protesting the Israeli crackdown since early October. More than 140 Palestinians have been killed while Israeli officials put the death toll of their forces and settlers at more than 20.

Some reports said the car bomb in Tel Aviv was linked to an underworld dispute meant to kill a notorious criminal. They said the criminal survived a similar assassination attempt a few months ago in an attack which injured one.