UPDATE 3: Who are the culprits? Since no one has claimed responsibility for the barbaric attacks, speculation has already begun and almost everyone is pointing to the one and only Zarqawi. He has threatened Jordan publicly a number of times so no surprise there. Also, these similtaneous attacks bear the hallmarks of Al-Qeada. I would say the culprits are either Zarqawi or an al-Qaeda copycat. But I was surprised to hear Salamet Ne’mat, the director of Al-Hayat office in DC, saying on CNN that Syria might be linked to this. Ha? Why Syria? What kind of an analysis is this!
UPDATE 2: I just finished chatting with my sister. She just got home. It was difficult for her to get inside the neighborhood of Rabieh where my parents live and where one of the hotels was attacked. The police cordoned off the area completely and she was stuck in her car on the outskirts of Rabieyh for almost an hour. She made it home with the help of one policeman. The Days Inn Hotel, which was the third hotel attacked, is only one mile away from where my family lives. She said they can smell the smoke from our house. This is just horrible!
I’m a bit calmer now that I know that my immediate family members and most of my friends are okay. Thank God! Now it is time to unleash my anger at the bloodsucking low-life barbarians that attacked my country and killed my people.
May you enjoy the hell that is awaiting you, where, to your dismay, you will be greeted by seven demons instead of your long-awaited virgins! May you rot in hell over and over again along with Zarqawi, Bin Laden, Bin Shit and all those that support you. Nothing in the world can justify this. Those that try to justify this can rot in hell as well! May God protect my country and my people. May God bless the souls of those barbarically massacred today. We will never forget!
UPDATE: Here is the latest: Aljazeera is reporting that three explosins occurred in Amman. One at the Radission SAS, one at the Grand Hyatt and one at Days Inn in Rabyeh neighbourhood. My parents, my sisters and maybe half of Jordan live in Rabyeh. My parents live very close to the Days Inn. I just called them and thank God they are fine. Dad said he heard the explosion. The death toll so far is 18!!
I’m shaking as I’m writing this. I do not know what to say anymore. I’m appalled, disgusted and on the verge of tears. My sister is still driving back home and I can’t get a hold of her. I feel like smashing this monitor right now!
Here is the MSNBC report. A Yahoo slideshow here and Sabbah’s Flicker. AP is running a continuing update here …
An explosion shook the Grand Hyatt hotel in Jordan’s capital late Wednesday, and witnesses saw smoke rising from the building. A police official said some people had been killed, "and there are many wounded." An American businessman who was at the hotel when the explosion occurred, said a "bomb that went off in the lobby." He declined to identify himself.
Police said the cause of the explosion was unknown. A black cloud of smoke was seen rising from the building in the commercial Jebel Amman district following the blast at about 8:50 p.m. (1:50 p.m. EST). Ambulances were seen rushing to the hotel.
Hi Natasha,
Was about to fall asleep when I saw your email.
It looks like it is Zarqawi or some linked group.
It may have been Iraqis working with Al Qaida in Iraq, or Saudis.
But Syrians. Never. This is not their MO. If anything, Syrians go for personalities.
But the fact this happened while the King was out of Jordan is significant I think.
Jareer, torture them to what aim? I think the evil doers perished in the act.
But if they catch the masterminds, I think they should stand trial and have Jordanian law take care of it.
Silence !
Metalordie,
Yeah the King was in Kazakhstan. He is on his way back to Jordan.
Should those evil doers and their aids, if caught, be tortured?
Oh for pete’s sake.>
Aljazeera interviewed Fadi Qathi of human rights watch. He asked: Is Amman a war zone, a battle field? Tell us if it is. But it isn’t. So nothing can justify the killings of civilians.
Nothing.
Aljazeera interviewer: But the US military kills civilians without distinguishing them from fighters in Iraq.
Qathi: That cannot possibly justify this act. No way.
<
Hey Natasha, is it true King Abdullah is out of town? I wonder, if that is true, if it is related.
Did anyone see a BBC interview with some journalist from Al Ghad? Apparently he said this crime was a punishment for the king.
Anyone have anything on this let me know.
Mustapha Akkad’s daughter has died of injuries she sustained.
Akkad was injured in the neck, but not confirmed.
Hyatt hotel officials say they have video showing the whole thing.
Did anyone see a BBC interview with some journalist from Al Ghad? Apparently he said this crime was a punishment for the king.
Anyone have anything on this let me know.
Eyewitness (works in the hotel) in the lobby of the Grand Hyatt:
There was one person who was acting very strange.
He was wearing a suit. He was walking around the lobby. He had a strange accent.
Hotel was at 98% capacity mostly arabs.
(Aljazeera kept asking if there were Israeli tourists. They have not stopped asking this question even when analysts are telling them Israeli tourists in Amman have drastically dropped since th 2000 Intifada)
(Aljazeera is really asking stupid questions. They are asking a waiter if he had heard from friends that a threat was imminent)
The hotel worker said that there was an Iraqi man wearing a suit and tie who seemed nervous. He was not carrying a suitcase or seemed to be wearing an explosive belt but he seemed nervous.
Hote worker said there were about 300 people in the hotel lobby.
The hotel worker said there were many members of the Jordanian Mukhabarat (Secret Police) in the hotel at the time.
I just heard they’re upto 67 dead.
That 9/11 and 11/9 thing is creepy.
I am so very sorry for your country and the Jordanian people. It boggles the mind how people think they can get virgins in heaven by killing innocent people.
We’ll be praying for your country.
I really have no idea what this means but they said the wedding at the Radisson SAS was an “Islamic wedding”.
Probably means no music or no bellydancer.
I don’t know.