August 5, 2003
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Thirteen people were killed and nearly 150 wounded after an apparent homicide attack on a Marriott hotel in downtown Jakarta Tuesday.
The powerful car bomb exploded at lunchtime outside the upscale hotel in Jakarta's business district, economic hub of a country that has been anticipating more attacks as it cracks down on violent Islamic militants and regional separatists.
Two Americans were hurt in the blast, and a Dutch businessman was reportedly killed.
The U.S. Embassy in Jakarta said one of the Americans had been treated and released from a local hospital, and the other was still being attended to. Ten employees of the New Zealand dairy company Fonterra were also injured in the blast.
Jakarta district governor Sutiyoso, who like many Javanese uses a single name, said Tuesday bombing was "very likely" the result of terrorism.
Defense Minister Matori Abdul Djalil declined to specify who was behind the explosion, but said it was the work of "terrorists."
Indonesia's security minister said the government was stepping up security following the bombing. He said the government had ordered strict security checks at airports and other public places — and that even stronger measures would be announced.
Shattered glass and puddles of blood covered the ground for two blocks around the hotel, a popular place for foreigners to stay and located near many embassies.
"People were screaming, panicking," said one man, Sodik, who was having lunch on the 27th floor of an adjacent building. "I thought it was an earthquake."
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing. But since last October's bombings in Bali (search), which killed 202 people, mostly young Western tourists, authorities have warned that more attacks in Indonesia were likely — possibly by Jemaah Islamiyah, the Southeast Asian terror group linked to both Al Qaeda and the Bali bombings.
A U.S. official told The Associated Press that the bombing bears the hallmarks of Jemaah Islamiyah, adding that causing maximum casualties in a high-profile attack was a trademark of the militant group.
The national police chief said Tuesday's bomb was eerily familiar.
"The bomb that hit the Marriott was similar to the bombing in Bali," General Da'i Bachtiar told reporters. He did not say if he believed the perpetrators were from Jemaah Islamiyah.
Bachtiar said officials suspected the explosives were placed in an Indonesian-made four-wheel-drive vehicle. Its chassis was being examined.
Indonesian police were seeking the help of Australian police in the latest attack.
The Indonesian Red Cross put the death toll at 13, and 149 wounded. Dutch citizen Hans Winkelmolen, president of PT Rabobank Duta Indonesia, was among the dead. The bank is majority-owned by Rabobank of the Netherlands, Indonesia's colonial ruler for four centuries.
On Thursday, a court in Bali was scheduled to deliver its verdict in the trial of Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, who is accused of planning and carrying out the Oct. 12 attacks in Bali. He is the first of about three dozen suspects to be tried in the case.
Black smoke billowed from the front of the Marriott, the site of many diplomatic receptions held by the U.S. Embassy. During the past two years, U.S. officials have held 4th of July celebrations at the hotel, part of the Bethesda, Md.-based chain.
Indonesia's Vice President Hamzah Haz said the attack may have targeted U.S. interests in the country.
"I think it is possible that was what was behind it," he said.
A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta condemned the attack and said U.S. authorities were confident in the Indonesian government's ability to rein in terrorism. But he added that the State Department travel advisory against traveling to Indonesia, issued in June, remained in effect.
The advisory alerted U.S. citizens to security threats related to the outbreak of active hostilities in Aceh province between the Indonesian military and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), and reminded Americans of ongoing terrorist threats in Indonesia.
"The U.S. government believes extremist elements may be planning additional attacks targeting U.S. interests in Indonesia," the advisory states, "particularly U.S. government officials and facilities."
Tuesday's explosion was sure to hurt Indonesia's efforts to persuade tourists and foreign investors to come back to the country. Australia, which lost 88 people in the Bali bombings, warned its citizens Tuesday to avoid central Jakarta.
The explosion came four days after President Megawati Sukarnoputri vowed to destroy the terrorist networks responsible for a series of bombings across the world's largest Muslim nation, saying the "domestic branch of the international terrorism movement is a terrifying threat."
The Jakarta stock exchange closed 3.1 percent lower following news of the blast.
Mellanie Solagratia, a spokeswoman for the hotel, said most of the damage appeared to have occurred in the basement and on the second floor. She said the 330-room hotel was 77 percent occupied as of Monday.
Johan Labetiubun, reporting to Fox News via phone from Jakarta, said that several hours before the explosion, the U.S. Embassy had canceled three-day reservations for about 20 rooms in the Marriott.
Witness Jaganathan Nadeson said he looked out of his window on the 22nd floor after the blast and saw a vehicle engulfed in flames in front of the hotel.
"I heard a big bang and I tried to get out of the building as quickly as possible," said Asroni, a hotel employee, as he picked bits of glass from his uniform. "The smoke was getting into my lungs."
The hotel lobby's plate-glass windows were shattered, as were some upper-floor windows. The lobby was badly damaged. Several cars smoldered outside.
Inside a ground-floor restaurant of an adjacent building, half-eaten pasta dishes sat on tables covered in broken plates and glass.
The adjacent Rajawali building houses the embassies of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. None of the staff were injured but the buildings were damaged.
Another office worker named Iin said most of the casualties appeared to be security guards who were stationed in front of the Marriott.
"I thought a plane must have hit the building," he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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