One of the three suicide terrorists who killed 13 people in a hotel bombing in Mombassa, Kenya, on Thursday was identified by the Israeli Army Radio as Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah. The name matched that of an Al Qaeda terrorist sought by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Another bomber, Faed Ali Sayam, a Kenyan, was also suspected to be an Al Qaeda terrorist, CNN reported on Friday.

The two were indicted in connection with the 1998 twin US embassy bombings in Africa that killed 224 people.

The bombing was one of two attacks in Kenya that targeted Israelis. Two missiles just missed a chartered Israeli airliner taking tourists back to Israel.

Apart from the 13, the bombers also perished in the attack on Hotel Malindi. The missiles missed the Arkia Boeing 757 and arrived safely in Tel Aviv after the pilot reported seeing "smoke trails" seconds after takeoff.

In a statement faxed to a news agency in Beirut, a previously unknown group, The Army of Palestine, claimed responsibility for the attack. The Al-Manar, Hezbollah television, received another such fax, but editors doubted its credibility.

The outfit said it wanted to "make the world hear once again the voice of Palestinian refugees, and to cast light on Zionist terrorism in the West Bank and Gaza."

US President George W Bush condemned the attack in the "strongest possible terms".

"The United States remains firmly committed, with its partners around the world, to the fight against terror and those who commit these heinous acts," he said.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell said: "We call on the Palestinians to take immediate and sustained steps to eradicate the infrastructure of terrorism and violence that has wrought such tragic bloodshed."