Terrified tourists were fleeing the island resort of Bali today and the US Embassy in Jakarta ordered all nonessential staff and dependants to leave Indonesia, after a bomb attack that killed 188 people.

A car bombing in Indonesia that killed at least 187 people was condemned by US President George W Bush tonight as “a heinous act of terrorism”.

The death toll from an explosion in a Bali nightclub is reported to be at 182, with at least 178 injured in what the national police chief described as the worst act of terror in Indonesia’s history.

A hand grenade that killed a man when it exploded prematurely in the Indonesian capital today was to have been thrown at a house belonging to the US Embassy, the national police chief said.

Tight security was enforced across Europe tonight on the eve of the anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the US.