Eight Killed in Kenyan Hotel Blast

A truck bomb exploded outside a hotel used by Israeli tourists on the Kenyan coast today, killing at least eight people.

A witness reported that a truck packed with explosives rammed into the Mombasa Paradise hotel, an Israeli-owned establishment.

"I can see eight bodies in the lobby. Most appear to be adult men," one of the witnesses told the Reuters news agency. The hotel was full of Israeli guests.

Hospital sources said at least six people had been injured after the bomb went off at about 8am local time (0500 GMT).

Col Bonventur Wendo, director of Kenya's national disaster centre, said police and intelligence officers were at scene.

"I heard a loud explosion," an Israeli hotel guest, identified only as Rami, told Israel TV's Channel Two. Another guest, Osnat, said there were many wounded, including a number of children. Some of the wounded were taken to a nearby small hospital.

One or two missiles may also have been fired at an Israeli jet as it took off from Mombasa today with 270 passengers and crew on board.

Col Wendo said he had no details of the attack, but Ron Prosor, an Israeli foreign ministry spokesman, said two missiles were fired toward the Israeli plane. The pilot saw a flash of light on the left side of the plane, said a company official, Shlomo Hanael.

An official at the Israeli embassy said he had heard the reports but said he could not confirm whether a missile was fired.

The aircraft belonging to the Arkia charter company was lightly damaged, but no one aboard was hurt, Israel TV's Channel Two said. The aircraft had initially prepared for an emergency landing in Nairobi, but then decided to continue to Israel. Kenya was the scene of a major terrorist attack on August 7 1998, when a car bomb blast outside the US Embassy in Nairobi killed 219 people - the vast majority Kenyan - and wounded 5,000.

A nearly simultaneous attack on the US embassy in neighbouring Tanzania killed 12 people and injured more than 80.