Terrorists are ready to carry out an attack in Indonesia, possibly targeting a Hilton hotel, the Australian government said yesterday.
Australia's foreign ministry issued a statement saying it had "received credible new information suggesting terrorists are ready to carry out an attack shortly in Indonesia, possibly targeting a Hilton hotel," adding that, "Other targets cannot be ruled out."
Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, speaking from Papua New Guinea, said the attack could be on a Hilton or another Western hotel and urged Australians to keep away from them.
The statement did not elaborate on where the information came from and Pranowo Dahlan, head of Indonesia's anti terror unit, said he was unaware of the new warning.
"We have no information regarding a specific attack and we're trying to get more information from the Australian government," he said.
Downer said: "This is credible information from intelligence. We wouldn't be passing it on if we weren't particularly concerned about the information."
The Hilton hotel chain has three hotels in Indonesia: in the capital, Jakarta; on the tourist island of Bali; and in the industrial city of Surabaya on Java island.
Canberra warned Australians in Indonesia to avoid all international hotels and other places where foreigners gather.
It also advised Australians to defer nonessential travel there.
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