Jordanians Rally to Denounce Al-Zarqawi

Is this a first? Has to be. Not blaming America for something bad that happened in the arab world... yeah this has to be a first. Are the arabs finally realizing that maybe, just maybe, that they're killing each other in the name of killing things American? Sure, you hate America, so you go blow up a bunch of Iraqi children because they had some American candy... this actually made sense to someone!

Anyway, article below:

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Jordanians Rally to Denounce Al-Zarqawi

By JAMAL HALABY, Associated Press Writer 28 minutes ago

AMMAN, Jordan - Hundreds of angry Jordanians rallied Thursday outside one of three U.S.-based hotels attacked by suicide bombers, shouting, "Burn in hell, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi!" after the terrorist's group claimed responsibility for the blasts that killed at least 56 people.

In an Internet statement, al-Qaida in Iraq linked the blasts at the Grand Hyatt, the Radisson SAS and the Days Inn hotels to the war in Iraq and called Amman the "backyard garden" for U.S. operations.

Police continued a broad security lockdown and authorities sent DNA samples for testing to identify the attackers. Land borders were reopened after being closed for nearly 12 hours.

The Amman protest was organized by Jordan's 14 professional and trade unions — made up of both hard-line Islamic groups and leftist political organizations — traditionally a vocal critic of King Abdullah II's moderate and pro-Western policies.

Protesters — including women and children — gathered outside a bombed hotels, shouting, "Death to al-Zarqawi, the villain and the traitor!" Drivers honked the horns of vehicles decorated with Jordanian flags and posters of the king. A helicopter hovered overhead.

"We sacrifice our lives for you, Amman!" the protesters chanted.

State television said a second rally was planned in the Red Sea port of Aqaba, where attackers using Katyusha rockets narrowly missed a U.S. ship and killed a Jordanian soldier in August.

The streets of the capital appeared deserted early Thursday, which was declared a day of mourning. Public and private offices were closed under government instructions, apparently to allow tightened security measures to take hold.

Government spokesman Bassel Tarawneh said 56 people were killed in the suicide attacks, but he said that number likely would rise. The victims included 15 Jordanians, five Iraqis, one Saudi, one Palestinian, three Chinese, one Indonesian; 30 others had not been identified.

The nearly simultaneous attacks also wounded more than 115 people, police said. They detained several people overnight, although it was unclear if they were suspects or witnesses.

The al-Qaida claim said Jordan became a target because it was "a backyard garden for the enemies of the religion, Jews and crusaders ... a filthy place for the traitors ... and a center for prostitution." The authenticity of the posting could not be independently verified, but it appeared on an Islamic Web site that is a clearing house for statements by militant groups.

The claim, signed in the name of the terrorist group's spokesman, said the attacks put the United States on notice that the "backyard camp for the crusader army is now in the range of fire of the holy warriors."

The hotels, frequented by Israelis and Americans among other foreign guests, have long been on al-Qaida's hit list.

Iraqi government spokesman Laith Kubba said the attack should alert Jordan that it needed to stop hosting former members of
Saddam Hussein's regime.

"I hope that these attacks will wake up the `Jordanian street' to end their sympathy with Saddam's remnants ... who exploit the freedom in this country to have a safe shelter to plot their criminal acts against Iraqis."

He also said Iraqis may have had a hand in the attacks.

"The al-Qaida organization has become as a plague that affected Iraq and is now transmitted by the same rats to other countries. A lot of Iraqis, especially former intelligence and army officers, joined this criminal cell," Kubba said.

Deputy Prime Minister Marwan Muasher said shortly after the blasts that al-Zarqawi was a "prime suspect." The Jordanian-born al-Zarqawi is known for his animosity to the country's Hashemite monarchy. The claim of responsibility did not name King Abdullah II but twice referred to the "tyrant of Jordan."

In the attacks, the suicide bombers detonated explosives at the three hotels just before 9 p.m. One explosion occurred inside a hall where 300 guests were celebrating a wedding.

Until late Wednesday, Amman — a comfortable, hilly city of white stone villas and glitzy high-rises — had mostly avoided large-scale attacks and was a welcome sanctuary of stability in a troubled region.

Al-Zarqawi is most known for the string of devastating suicide attacks launched in Iraq, often against U.S. targets but also against Shiite Iraqis. He has shown a flair for propaganda and drawn wide support among militants in the region.

But outside Iraq, and especially in Jordan, he has been equally active.

He was sentenced to death in absentia by a Jordanian military court for the October 2002 assassination of a U.S. diplomat, Laurence Foley, in Amman.

His group also is accused of previously trying to blow up the Radisson SAS in Amman as part of the so-called Millennium plot in 1999 and of the August attack at the Jordanian port of Aqaba. In Amman, a security official said authorities had tips on suspects who are being hunted, including possible sleeper cells or individuals who may have assisted the attackers and later fled in a vehicle bearing Iraqi license plates.

The official, insisting on anonymity because he is not allowed to speak to reporters, said DNA tests were being carried out to determine the identity of the perpetrators, including two suicide bombers who blew themselves up. A third suicide attacker used a car.

The state Jordan Television showed Abdullah inspecting the sites of the blasts after returning home early Thursday, cutting short an official visit to Kazakhstan. He later presided over a meeting of his security chiefs, including police and intelligence.