AMMAN, April 10: Jordanian authorities said on Saturday they had found cars carrying explosives that an underground group had planned to use to attack American interests, a senior security source said.

The source said an unspecified number of cars laden with explosives were found and the suspects who sought to use them had been arrested.

"The group planned attacks on American interests including the embassy and a number of US organizations based in Jordan," he said.

Senior security officials said earlier this month that cars carrying explosives had been driven into Jordan from Syria. Jordan's long desert border with Syria is patrolled by both sides, but smugglers slip in.

Officials had said they had uncovered a group planning attacks in the country, arresting some suspects now under interrogation.

Three others got away, and state television has run their pictures appealing to Jordanians to give the police any information on their whereabouts.

Jordan's close US ties and 1994 peace with Israel are unpopular with many in the conservative kingdom and there is strong support for militant groups in some areas.

In mid-March, the United States increased its level of alert in Jordan, urging Americans to step up vigilance after receiving information about possible attacks on hotels in the kingdom. -Reuters