Al-Qaeda claims Jordan blasts

Amman/Dubai: The group of al-Qaeda's frontman in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, claimed the suicide bombings on Amman hotels on Thursday.

"Our good lions launched a new raid in Amman," said a statement by Zarqawi's al-Qaeda organisation in the land of the two rivers.

Three suspected suicide bombers blew themselves up at three international hotels in Jordan's capital Amman, killing 60 people and wounding 150 others.

In Wednesday's synchronised attacks, two bombs exploded while crowds were celebrating weddings, leaving blood and destruction at Amman's luxury Grand Hyatt hotel and the nearby Radisson SAS.

A third blast targeted a Days Inn hotel.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but counter-terrorism officials pointed the finger at the al-Qaeda and its leader in Iraq, Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, because of the simultaneous attacks, a hallmark of the militant network.

US intelligence suspects Al-Zarqawi behind these attacks.

"The initial investigations so far show that the blasts that caused the deaths of 60 people and wounded 110 people had been executed by explosive devices and suicide bombings," said a statement issued by the Jordanian Cabinet.

Jordan's King Abdullah blamed a 'deviant and misled group' for the attacks. "The attacks targeted and killed innocent Jordanian civilians," the king, whose country is bordered by Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Israel, said in a statement.

Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan Marwan al-Muasher told a news conference that most of the victims were Jordanians.

Authorities said that they did not yet have any details on all the nationalities.

Huge ball of fire

Stating about the devastating blast, a French UN official, who was at the Hyatt said, "I was eating with friends in the restaurant next to the bar when I saw a huge ball of fire shoot up to the ceiling and then everything went black".

"It caused absolute devastation. The bar was definitely the target, but the whole lobby was packed with people."

US President George W. Bush and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas were among world leaders who condemned the attacks. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan canceled plans to visit Amman on Thursday.

The explosion at the Radisson tore through a banqueting room where about 250 people were attending a wedding reception, witnesses said.

A smaller wedding, attracting several dozen well-dressed young people, was going on at the Hyatt.

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There were dozens of wounded people at Hyatt, including one young woman hit by shrapnel in her legs and back and apparently left paralyzed.

At the Hyatt, one waiter, identified by his name tag as Mustafa, lay motionless on the hotel's back steps as guests tried to resuscitate him before ambulance workers arrived.

Many Westerners, including tourists, businessmen and foreign contractors working in Iraq, were staying at the three hotels. The Radisson is known to be popular with Israeli tourists.

Roadblocks set up

Police and some military units threw up roadblocks around hotels and embassies in the city, causing traffic chaos.

Officials said Jordan had closed its borders.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari who arrived in Amman for an unannounced visit told reporters he would "point the fingers of accusation against al-Qaeda".

Jordan has so far been spared major attacks on foreigners despite its proximity to Iraq and popularity as a tourist destination, but the authorities had been braced for trouble.

Katyusha rockets were fired at two US warships in Jordan's Red Sea port of Aqaba in August, narrowly missing their targets and hitting civilian buildings and the nearby Israeli port of Eilat.

Jordanian security officials said they believed al-Qaeda was involved in the attack.

In Washington, a US counter-terrorism official said: "Certainly there's suspicion Zarqawi may have culpability (in Wednesday's attacks). But at this point it's too early to tell."

Zarqawi, who comes from the poor town of Zarqa outside Amman, was jailed by Jordan in 1996 but freed under amnesty by King Abdullah when he assumed the throne three years later.

"This clearly would be something very personal to him -- not just ideological, but a grudge match," said Hungary-based security expert Sebestyen Gorka.