World News Car bomb kills 13 at Jakarta hotel

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JAKARTA (AP) - A powerful car bomb exploded Aug. 5 outside the Marriott hotel in downtown Jakarta, killing 13 people and wounding nearly 150 in what an official said was likely a suicide attack. At least one foreigner, a Dutch citizen, was reportedly among the dead.

Shattered glass and puddles of blood covered the ground for two blocks around the hotel, which was located in a business district near many embassies.

The hotel was a regular venue for receptions held by the U.S. Embassy. During the past two years, U.S. officials have held 4th of July celebrations at the hotel.

Indonesia's Vice President Hamzah Haz said the attack may have targeted U.S. interests in the country.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing, but Indonesian police said Aug. 6 that the bomb contained the same cocktail of explosives as the Bali bombs and was detonated by mobile phone - like at least one of the Bali blasts.

The disclosure reinforced suspicions that the bombing was carried out by the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terror group.

Singapore's Straits Times newspaper quoted an anonymous operative of the al-Qaeda-linked Islamic militant organization as saying the hotel attack was a "bloody warning" to Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri.

"This is a message for her and all our enemies that if they execute any of our Muslim brothers, we will continue this campaign of terror," the operative told the newspaper in a reference to the ongoing trials of JI militants over the Bali attack.

ジャカルタのホテルで爆弾テロ

ジャカルタ市街にある米資本系高級ホテル前で5日、大規模な爆発が起きた。インドネシア赤十字などによると、13人が死亡、約150人が負傷した。

Shukan ST: Aug. 15, 2003

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