LONDON: Israel was sucked into the US-led “war on terrorism” for the first time on Thursday after a suicide bombing at a hotel in Mombasa, Kenya, left 15 dead and a charter plane narrowly escaped being shot down in an audacious missile attack.

The involvement of Israel, which has been on the sidelines until now, marks an important escalation in the battle against terrorist groups like Al Qaeda. Israeli action could alienate many in the Arab and Muslim world, further polarizing the conflict.

Although the intended targets of the car bomb at the Paradise hotel were believed to be Israeli holidaymakers, the brunt of the blast was taken by a Kenyan dance group performing for the tourists.

Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda network was widely blamed for the synchronized attacks, even though other Middle East groups claimed responsibility.

The Israeli leader, Ariel Sharon, ordered the intelligence agency Mossad, which has a reputation for ruthless pursuit of opponents, to track down those responsible.

The blast killed three Israelis — two aged 12 and 13 — and nine Kenyans. The three suicide bombers, believed to be of Arab origin, were also killed. About 80 people were injured, three of whom were said to be in critical condition.

Five minutes before the hotel bombing, men standing a mile outside Mombasa’s airport perimeter fired two missiles at an Israeli holiday charter plane carrying 261 passengers as it was taking off. The plane landed safely in Tel Aviv five hours later. A Kenyan police spokesman said that “three or four men with Arab features” were seen leaving the area in a white vehicle.

Both Sharon and his new foreign minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, have been keen since Sept 11 to fuse the Israeli fight with Palestinian groups as being part of the wider ‘war on terrorism’. But, until now, Israel has been largely kept on the sidelines.

The al-Aqsa Brigades, which is part of the Fatah organization led by the Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, claimed responsibility. So too did a previously unknown group, called the Army of Palestine.

Although both Washington and London said it was too early to apportion blame for the attacks, Israel immediately pinned responsibility on Al Qaeda, which has a strong presence in east Africa.

If Al Qaeda was responsible on Thursday, it would be the network’s first direct attack on Israeli citizens.

The number of incidents worldwide linked to Al Qaeda has accelerated over the last six months. The worst was the Bali bombing on Oct 12.

In the aftermath of that attack, the Australian government issued a specific warning of a “possible risk of terrorist attacks against sites in Kenya”.—Dawn/The Guardian News Service.