Indonesia is coming under increasing international pressure to round up Muslim militants following the weekend bomb attacks that killed at least 187 tourists and injured hundreds of others on the idyllic resort island of Bali.
As speculation increased that the attacks were the work of a group linked to the al-Qaeda terrorist network, the Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed that two Irish tourists were among the injured. The majority of the victims of the two bomb attacks, which took place on Saturday night in the club district near Kuta beach, were Australians and other foreigners.
A third, smaller bomb exploded outside the US consulate. No one was injured in that blast.
No group has admitted responsibility, but suspicion immediately turned to al-Qaeda and an affiliated hard-line Islamic group, Jemaah Islamiyah (JI). The attack triggered international outrage, with President Bush and the British Prime Minister, Mr Blair, condemning the action.
Mr Bush described the attack as a "cowardly act designed to create terror and chaos" while a spokesman for Mr Blair said he was "horrified". Both leaders offered help to Indonesia to track down those responsible.
The Australian Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, called for "the maximum effort" on the part of the Indonesian government to deal with the terrorist problem within its own borders.
"It has been a problem for a long time," he said, after speaking to the Indonesian President, Mrs Megawati Sukarnoputri, by telephone. Police put the official death toll at 187 and said the victims included nationals from Australia, Britain, France, Germany and Sweden. More than 300 people were injured, 90 seriously, in what is one of the most devastating attacks ever against tourists.
A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman said last night the two Irish hurt in the blasts were not seriously injured. He said it was unlikely that any Irish were among the dead. A representative from the Irish Embassy in Singapore is due to arrive in Bali today.
Hospitals on the island were overwhelmed and barely able to cope with the hundreds of injured, many with horrific burns from the explosions and inferno that followed. Volunteers reported a shortage of basic medical supplies, including painkillers and saline solution. Bodies of victims wrapped in white sheets filled the morgue of Bali's main hospital, and friends and relatives searched for missing loved ones in the wards.
Australia shuttled C-130 Hercules airforce planes to Bali to evacuate injured nationals able to survive the trip.
Indonesia has been criticised by its south-east Asian neighbours in recent times for its seeming reluctance to tackle Islamic extremists, despite evidence that Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network has established a foothold in the sprawling archipelago.
The Indonesian President flew to Bali after an emergency Cabinet meeting. She said the explosions were a warning that terrorism was a threat to national security. But she offered no clues on who authorities believed might be to blame.
"The Indonesian government will continue co-operation with the international community to overcome terrorism," she said.
The United States and Singapore, which has detained dozens of people in a crackdown on Jemaah Islamiah, have been pressing Indonesia to arrest the group's alleged leader, Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir.
At a news conference yesterday Bashir blamed the United States for the attacks. "It would be impossible for Indonesians to do it," he said. "Indonesians don't have such powerful explosives. I think maybe the US are behind the bombings because they always say Indonesia is part of a terrorist network."
There had been warnings by Malaysia, Singapore and Australia in the last few weeks that JI was planning major terrorist attacks.