2:59pm UK, Friday July 17, 2009

At least eight people, including four foreigners, have been killed in suicide bomb attacks on two luxury hotels in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, police have said.

Police stand guard outside the blast ravaged Ritz-Carlton hotel

The first explosion hit the Marriott hotel, sending glass and debris out onto the street.

Two minutes later, the facade of the neighbouring Ritz-Carlton hotel was blown off in the second blast.

Police said the bombers had checked in to the Marriott as paying guests on Wednesday and assembled the bombs in their room.

Operational chief Arief Wahyunadi said the devices were planted in the Ritz-Carlton’s Air Langga restaurant and in the basement of the Marriott.

A third bomb was found and defused in a laptop computer bag on the 18th floor.

“Room 1808 had become their post since the 15th,” National police chief General Bambang Hendarso Danuri told a news conference.

Indonesia’s TVOne showed closed-circuit television footage of a man they said was the Ritz-Carlton’s suspected suicide bomber.

He was wearing a baseball cap and pulling a wheelie-bag through the lobby.

Indonesia‘s security minister said a New Zealander was among those killed, and at least 50 people were seriously hurt.

A Foreign Office spokesman said it had no indications that any Britons were among the dead or injured, but checks of hospitals were still ongoing.

Nationals from the US, Australia, Canada, India, the Netherlands, Norway and South Korea were among the injured.

The Indonesian president has vowed to hunt down those responsible for the twin hotel blasts.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the finger of blame cannot be pointed at any one group and the government is taking emergency steps for the victims’ families.

He told a news conference the attacks would damage confidence in south east Asia’s biggest economy.

“I am sure most of us are deeply concerned, feel very sorry and are crying silently, like the way I am feeling,” Mr Yudhoyono said.

The perpetrators were “laughing and cheering with anger and hatred”, he added.

The Ritz-Carlton was due to host Manchester United at the weekend, ahead of an exhibition game against the Indonesian All Stars.

The football team has now cancelled the match following the attacks, the club said.

Australian journalist Stephen Fitzpatrick, who was at the scene in Jakarta, told Sky News the bombings appeared to be well-planned, as security at the two hotels is extremely tight.

“It is significant that the bombers were able to launch an attack from within the building,” he said.

There is speculation the attacks were carried out by the Southeast Asian terror network, Jemaah Islamiyah (JI).

However, authorities have not said who they believe are behind the blasts and no group has so far claimed responsibility.

JI has been blamed for numerous attacks in Indonesia, including bombings in Bali in 2002 that killed 202 people.

They are also believed to be responsible for a car bomb blast at the Marriott in 2003. Twelve people were killed in that attack and the hotel was badly damaged.

But since then, Indonesian officials have cracked down on terrorism groups, particularly JI.