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6-8-2003 Scotsman Suicide bomber 'had links with al-Qaeda' By Gethin Chamberlain Diplomatic Correspondent A GROUP with links to al-Qaeda was yesterday blamed for a suicide bomb attack on a hotel in Indonesia popular with western tourists and businessmen which left at least 14 people dead and 150 injured. A van packed with explosives blew up outside the Marriott Hotel in the capital Jakarta just as people were pouring out of their offices for lunch and to answer the call to prayer from the local mosques. Many were injured by flying glass as the force of the explosion blew out windows in the smart business and diplomatic district. No group claimed immediate responsibility for the attack, but police said it bore similarities with last year's nightclub bombing in Bali which killed 202 people. That attack was the work of Jemaah Islamiyah, an Islamic militant group with links to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network. Last night, the Foreign Office advised Britons still in Indonesia to consider leaving the country and not to undertake any non-essential travel. It said it had reduced the number of staff in its Jakarta embassy and warned that there was a high risk of terrorism directed against westerners throughout the country. The attack came just hours after Abu Bakar Bashir, the leader of Jemaah Islamiyah, took the stand for the first time at his treason trial over a series of bombings in 2000, and two days before a court in Bali was due to deliver its verdict in the trial of Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, the first person to appear in court in connection with the bombing there. Four days earlier, Megawati Sukarnoputri, the president, vowed to destroy the terror networks responsible for a series of bombings across Indonesia. Yesterday's explosion is another blow to the Indonesian economy, already struggling to cope with the reaction to the Bali bombings, which scared off tourists and foreign investors alike. The 33-story hotel was badly damaged, its lobby covered in charred sofas, overturned tables and caved-in ceilings. Outside there were puddles of blood and the streets were strewn with shattered glass. Supria, 40, a construction worker who witnessed the aftermath, said rescuers aimed fire extinguishers at people engulfed in flames. He said: "Women ran out of the hotel screaming 'Help! Help!'" Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the Indonesian security minister, called the blast a "diabolical and inhumane terrorist attack" and said strict security measures had been put in place at the airport and in other public places. "We cannot allow any space for terrorism," he said, adding that he was certain the attack had been a suicide bombing. A spokesman for the United States also condemned the attack, but said Washington remained confident in Indonesia's ability to fight terrorism and protect US interests in the country. One US official said the blast "definitely has a trademark of Jemaah Islamiyah - to cause as many casualties as possible in high profile attacks". Police chief General Da'i Bachtiar said his men suspected the explosives were packed into a mini-van, just as in the Bali attacks. The burned chassis was being examined, he said.
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................................................................................................................. Copyright ©2004 Gethin Chamberlain. All rights reserved. |
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