Thaindian News

Nine people have been killed and more than 40 others injured in almost simultaneous early morning bomb blast at two Jakarta luxury hotels.

The Ritz-Carlton and the nearby JW Marriott hotels in South Jakarta were rocked by blasts shortly before 8am, sending an acrid plumb of black smoke spiraling out of the buildings, shattering windows and severely damaging portions of both hotels.

It is believed the bombs exploded in the foyer cafe of the Marriott and in the first floor Airlangga all-day restaurant of the Ritz Carlton

There were several breakfast meetings going on at the time of the blasts and those killed and injured were reported to be mostly foreigners.

At least three Dutch nationals and one Australian have been confirmed among the list of those killed.

Debris and shattered glass littered the street outside the neighbouring hotels in an upscale Jakarta neighborhood and ambulances raced to the scene.

A presidential spokesman, Dino Patti Djalal, described the blasts as “a coordinated attack” and said that most of the fatalities - at least nine - resulted from the Marriott blast.

The Australian ABC reported that hours before today’s fatal hotel bombings in Jakarta, experts had warned that young members of the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) terrorist organisation remained defiant and were intent on bombing Western targets.

The latest blasts follow the release from prison of convicted Jemaah Islamiah terrorists and a report from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute that their release posed a serious threat of further terrorist attacks.

Members of JI were behind the 2002 and 2005 Bali bombings which killed 225 people, including 92 Australians.

It is the second bombing attack on the JW Marriott hotel. In the previous attack in 2003, 12 people were killed.