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12 killed in bomb blast in Indonesian hotels
17 Jul 2009At least 12 people have been killed and scores more injured in nearly simultaneous bomb blasts at two top tourist hotels in Indonesia.
Bombers targeted the JW Marriott and the Ritz-Carlton hotels in central Jakarta on Friday morning leaving the city in chaos.
Jakarta police spokesman Chrysnanda Dwilaksana said all the dead were at the Marriott, which was badly damaged by a car bomb attack in 2003 that killed 12 people.
A Jakarta hospital official said at least 10 people had been brought in for treatment. Witnesses said foreigners were among those hurt.
The attacks came just days before the Manchester United soccer team had been due to stay at the hotel ahead of an exhibition game in Indonesia early next week.
There have not been any major bomb blasts in Indonesia for several years while this month's presidential elections passed off peacefully, underscoring the progress made by the world's most populous Muslim nation since the chaos and violence that surrounded the downfall of ex-autocrat Suharto in the late 1990s.
"We know there are six victims, six who died and there are several others injured and we have evacuated them to hospital," Dwilaksana said. Since his comments, six more have been confirmed dead.
The Indonesian rupiah fell 0.7 percent to 10,200 per dollar after the explosions, prompting state banks to sell dollars to support the currency, traders said.
Indonesian stocks opened more than 2 percent lower, although later regained some ground and were down less than 1 percent by 0300 GMT.
Witnesses at the scene told Indonesian Metro TV that the injured, including Indonesians and foreigners, were seen being taken away in ambulances.
"Some windows of the Ritz-Carlton building have been shattered, mostly on the lower section. I'm looking at it from my office," said Myra Junor, who works at a nearby building.
Windows at the Marriott were also shattered.
Lydia Ruddy, a witness who lives in the area, said she heard an explosion and saw smoke coming from the Marriott, followed five minutes later by another explosion at the Ritz-Carlton hotel, which is in the same area.
An Australian man told local Radio 2UE his son had been hurt at the Marriott and was being taken to hospital.
A Ritz Carlton employee said the Manchester United soccer team had been due to stay at the hotel ahead of an exhibition game in Indonesia early next week.
Islamist militants from the regional Jemaah Islamiah organisation were blamed for numerous attacks between 2002-2005 in Indonesia, including bombings on the island of Bali in 2002 that killed 202 people. Many militants have since been arrested. But an Australian security report on Thursday said Jemaah Islamiah could be poised to strike again.
Leadership tensions in JI and recent prison releases of JI members raised the possibility that splinter groups might now seek to re-energise the movement through violent attacks, said the report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
The report said JI was now a splintered group which may not be capable of replicating mass casualty attacks, but warned there was evidence that JI members released from prison "are gravitating towards hardline groups who continue to advocate al Qaeda-style attacks against Western targets".
"These hardline groups continue to believe that the use of violence against the "enemies of Islam" is justified under any circumstances," said the report.
