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King: Jordanians 'get mad, get even'

Al Qaeda claims four Iraqis behind Amman hotel attacks

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Jordan's King Abdullah II visits Friday with Ammar Al Kilany, 4, who was injured in Wednesday's bombings.

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AMMAN, Jordan (CNN) -- Jordan's King Abdullah II has vowed that the perpetrators of Wednesday's suicide bombings will be brought to justice.

"There is tremendous outrage by the Jordanian public that these people have targeted just innocent people," he told CNN on Friday. "And I can tell you that we Jordanians, we get mad and we get even, and these people will be brought to justice."

The attacks by suicide bombers in and near three downtown Amman hotels killed 57 people, mostly Jordanians. A Web posting on Friday claimed the bombers were Iraqis.

For a second night, Jordanians held a candlelight vigil Friday in front of the Radisson hotel, where the first and deadliest of the blasts took place.

Earlier, Abdullah -- visiting the wounded at an Amman hospital -- said his country was not intimidated by the attacks.

"Jordan is now part of many countries that have suffered from the senseless violence of suicide bombers, whether it's in European countries or in Arab and Muslim countries," the Jordanian king told CNN's Brent Sadler.

Four Iraqis -- including a husband and wife -- carried out the attacks, al Qaeda in Iraq claimed Friday on a Web site.

"A group of martyrdom-seekers carried out the planning and implementation. They comprised three men and a woman who decided to accompany her husband on the path to martyrdom," the statement said.

The statement, posted on a site often used by the terrorist network, gave the names of those responsible for Wednesday's attacks and said they were all Iraqis. It was signed in the name of an al Qaeda in Iraq spokesman, Abu Maysara al-Iraqi, The Associated Press said.

Al Qaeda in Iraq is headed by Jordanian-born Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The group has claimed responsibility for the bombings. (The making of a terrorist -- 4:02)

Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister Marwan Muasher said Friday the bombings were similar to others believed to have been carried out by al Qaeda.

But he told a news conference he could not confirm the Web site claim that the bombings were the work of four Iraqis. He said 12 people had been arrested, including Jordanians, in connection with the attacks.

Friday's al Qaeda claim came as more angry protests were planned against the group in Jordan.

Al-Zarqawi 'most wanted'

Al-Zarqawi is the most wanted man in Iraq, with a $25 million reward for his head.

His group claimed responsibility on a Web site for Wednesday's attacks at the Radisson, Grand Hyatt and Days Inn hotels that killed the three bombers and wounded 102 people. Most of the casualties were Jordanians.

The death toll in the bombings increased by one Friday morning to 57 -- 60 including the three bombers -- following the death of Moustapha Akkad, a Syrian-born movie director.

The worst carnage occurred at the Radisson, where the bomber detonated himself in the middle of a Jordanian wedding party. (Watch what the explosion left behind -- 4:39)

The terror group's Wednesday Web site posting said the attacks were carried out on "retreats that were planted in the land of Muslims in Amman."

"After studying the targets and watching, we chose the places to carry the mission on some of the hotels, which the Jordanian dictator turned into a back yard for the enemies of faith -- the Jews and the Crusaders," it said.

Abdullah has close relationships with Israel and the United States, and his nation is seen as a crucial Arab ally to Washington in the war on terror.

Abdullah appeared on Jordanian state television and said such terror attacks would only "increase our strength."

"We will pursue those criminals and those who stand behind them, and we will reach them wherever they are," the king said. "Jordan does not fear and does not accept blackmail, and those operations will never push us to change our position or our convictions.

Queen Noor, the widow of Abdullah's father King Hussein, predicted the terrorists would lose ground because of the anger over the bombings.

"I personally think they've made a significant tactical error here, because they have attacked innocent civilians, primarily Muslims," she told CNN's Anderson Cooper. "It is a sin against Islam what they have done."

The U.S.-born queen said a good friend was wounded and was in intensive care, adding that his daughter was killed.

Bush signs condolence book

In Washington, U.S. President George Bush said he telephoned the king and "expressed our nation's deep concern and compassion for those who lost their lives." Bush later visited the Jordanian Embassy, vowing his nation's solidarity with the Jordanian people and saying the "enemy must be defeated."

"May God bless the people of Jordan during this difficult time. Please know the American people join you in prayer and spirit," Bush wrote in a condolence book at the embassy.

Pentagon officials said there had been intelligence indicating the possibility of attacks on Western targets in Jordan -- a released hostage revealed that his captors had talked about such attacks. But Westerners escaped the brunt of the attacks.

The State Department said three Americans died in the blasts.

CNN's Brent Sadler, Barbara Starr and Kristen Gillespie contributed to this report.

Copyright 2005 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.

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