Grief-stricken relatives of the Chinese victims leave Beijing for Amman yesterday evening. [Xinhua]

Bodies of victims lay on ground outside the Days Inn hotel in central Amman November 9, 2005. At least 57 people were killed and scores wounded on Wednesday when three suspected suicide bombers blew themselves up in three hotels in Amman, a security source said. [Reuters]

　　AMMAN: Three Chinese were killed and one wounded in bombings that ripped through luxury hotels in Jordan's capital on Wednesday night.

　　They were members of a delegation from China's University of National Defence, and were staying at one of the targeted hotels, sources at the Chinese Embassy in Jordan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed yesterday.

　　An al-Qaida group led by America's deadliest foe in Iraq yesterday claimed responsibility for the deadly attacks, which killed 57 and wounded 110.

　　President Hu Jintao, who was in London on a state visit, asked the Foreign Ministry and relevant departments to take immediate measures and spare no effort in caring for the injured.

　　Hu sent a message of condolence to Jordan's King Abdullah II, saying that the Chinese Government condemns all forms of terrorism and is ready to co-operate with the international community, including Jordan, to combat terrorism.

　　The Foreign Ministry has advised Chinese citizens to avoid travelling to Jordan given the current situation there.

　　In Wednesday night's closely synchronized attacks, two bombs exploded while crowds were celebrating weddings, leaving blood and destruction at Amman Grand Hyatt and the nearby Radisson SAS. A third blast targeted a Days Inn hotel.

　　Al-Qaida in Iraq, led by Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, said in a statement on an Islamist website that "a group of our best lions" had carried out the attacks.

　　"Some hotels were chosen which the Jordanian despot had turned into a backyard for the enemies of the faith, the Jews and crusaders," said the message in a reference to King Abdullah. Its authenticity could not be verified.

　　The United States has put a US$25 million bounty on Zarqawi, who comes from a town north of Amman.

　　Police said they thought the blasts were the work of suicide bombers. Simultaneous attacks are an al-Qaida hallmark and US officials said they also suspected the network.

　　King Abdullah blamed a "deviant and misled group" while Foreign Minister Farouq Kasrawi said the attacks would not alter the policies of the kingdom, which is a close US ally.

　　A Chinese team comprising officials from the defence and foreign ministries and relatives of the victims left for Amman yesterday evening.

　　The dead were identified as Sun Jingbo, Zhang Kangping and Pan Wei, aged 41, 42 and 44 respectively.

　　Yao Liqiang, 42, suffered a leg fracture.

　　The other 30 members of the delegation have been transferred to a Jordanian military base.

　　Jordan had previously been spared major attacks, despite its proximity to Iraq and popularity as a tourist destination, but the authorities were braced for trouble.

　　"The initial investigations so far show that the blasts... were executed by explosive devices and suicide bombings," a Jordanian cabinet statement said.

　　The violence in Iraq has forced many UN agencies and private relief groups to relocate to Amman, which also hosts about 400,000 Iraqis who have fled the mayhem, bringing valuable investment to the country.

　　"This is a worldwide evil," British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, visiting Jordan on his way to Iraq, told reporters at the devastated Hyatt hotel.

　　Most of the victims were Jordanians.

　　A Palestinian diplomat said a senior Palestinian officer and two other officials were among the dead.

　　Schools, businesses and government offices closed as the stunned kingdom prepared to bury the dead. Police and troops threw up roadblocks around hotels and embassies in Amman.

　　US President George W. Bush, Russian President Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other world leaders condemned the attacks. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan cancelled plans to visit Amman yesterday.

　　The explosion at the Radisson tore through a banquet room where about 250 people were at a wedding reception, witnesses said. A smaller wedding was going on at the Hyatt.

　　Many Westerners, including tourists, businessmen and foreign contractors working in Iraq, were staying at the three hotels. The Radisson is known to be popular with Israeli tourists.

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