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Israeli tourists evacuated from Kenya
MOMBASA, Kenya (CNN) -- Israeli military planes early Friday evacuated more than 250 tourists -- some survivors of a deadly car bombing at a resort hotel in this East African nation, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Gilad Millo said. The bodies of three Israelis killed in the attack were also being taken back to their homeland. Several hundred Israeli officials arrived overnight in Mombasa to investigate and deal with the aftermath of synchronized attacks against Israelis just a day earlier. Thirteen people were killed Thursday when three suicide bombers blew up the Paradise Hotel in Mombasa. A short time earlier, unknown assailants fired two missiles at an Israeli charter plane carrying 271 people, but missed their target. Various officials have suggested the attack bears all the hallmarks of al Qaeda, the same group blamed for the 1998 dual bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, as well as the September 11 attacks in New York and Washington. (Full story) "There line is a direct line between New York, Washington, Moscow and Mombasa," said Millo. "International terrorism has struck again. "It's a very dangerous escalation of terrorism," he said, specifically referring to the missile attack. Five aircraft arrived early Friday carrying the contingent from Israel, including doctors, rabbis, psychologists, security officials and investigators, Millo said. Of the tourists evacuated, 235 were uninjured and 16 to 18 had been wounded. One of the three suicide terrorists in the hotel bombing was identified by Israeli Army Radio as Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah -- a name that matches one of the most wanted al Qaeda terrorists sought by the FBI. The name of one of the other bombers also is similar to a wanted al Qaeda terrorist. Both of the men were indicted in absentia in connection with the deadly 1998 twin U.S. embassy bombings in Africa that killed 224 people. The FBI in Washington had no immediate comment on the identities of Thursday's bombers.
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