US pressure US President George W Bush has urged both sides to put into effect the recommendations of the US-sponsored Mitchell report. But the BBC's Simon Ingram in Jerusalem says the prospects could hardly be bleaker for Mr Burns' mission. Mr Sharon is under pressure from hardliners in his government and from sections of public opinion to respond forcefully to what Israel sees as a campaign of provocation. Israel has rejected one of the Mitchell report's key recommendations - a freeze on Jewish settlement expansion. Mr Burns is seeking not only a ceasefire, but a timetable for additional measures that would eventually coax the two sides back to the negotiating table.
Correspondents say the spate of attacks inside Israel has fuelled a siege mentality.
We're going to give the ceasefire a chance. An Israeli police spokesman said 25 people were detained after Sunday's bomb blasts, but that police were not sure they were involved in the explosion. Witnesses reported a series of detonations during the morning rush hour, along with the second car bomb blast. The streets were less crowded than usual, on the eve of a Jewish holiday. Police said the device was a combination of a mortar bomb and nails.