A powerful truck bomb exploded outside the Jordanian embassy compound in Baghdad yesterday, killing 11 people, wounding 65 and leaving burned-out cars and shattered glass scattered nearby.

The motive for the attack was not immediately clear and no group claimed responsibility. But the blast occurred one week after Jordan gave asylum to two daughters of Saddam Hussein.

Iraqi police Captain Ahmad Suleiman said at the scene that four civilians were killed in a car caught in the blast and five policemen on guard outside the complex also died.

Hospital sources said later a total of 11 people had been killed and 65 wounded.

Lieutenant-General Ricardo Sanchez, the commander of ground forces in Iraq, said eight people were confirmed dead.

The vehicle that police said had carried the bomb was reduced to charred wreckage. Part of it was blown onto the roof of a neighboring house, the home owner said.

Dozens were wounded, including seven from inside the embassy, and rushed to nearby hospitals, Suleiman said. Body parts, including a head, were strewn across a wide area and windows within a 500-metre radius were blown out.

Captain Robert Ramsey of the 1st Armored Division said the bomb exploded at around 11 am. One of the outer walls of the compound had collapsed and several gutted cars smoldered on the street outside. A building inside the complex was slightly damaged.

Sanchez said that in terms of casualties it was the worst attack on a non-military target since the end of major combat. Since Washington declared major hostilities over on May 1, 55 American soldiers have been killed in guerrilla attacks.

Jordan condemned the attack and pledged to bring the perpetrators to justice, whoever they were. "This is a cowardly terrorist attack that we condemn in the strongest terms. It will not divert us from our path of support and aid to the Iraqi people on the process of stabilization," Information Minister Nabil al-Sharif said in Amman.

He said there were no reports any embassy staff members had been killed, but some might have been wounded. The charge d'affaires, Damay Haddad, was not at the compound at the time.

Some Iraqi bystanders said they were angry that Jordan had given sanctuary to members of Saddam's family.

However, supporters of the deposed Iraqi leader might also have had a motive -- they felt betrayed by Jordan, which aligned itself with Washington during the US-led invasion.

(China Daily August 8, 2003)