Taba, Egypt ? Israeli officials said Friday they believed al-Qaida was probably behind three suicide car bomb attacks targeting Red Sea resorts filled with Israeli tourists, as investigators searched for evidence and rescuers pulled bodies from the twisted wreckage of a five-star hotel and casino.

Thursday night’s bombings in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula killed 30 people, according to Israeli authorities, who were leading the rescue effort. Egyptian officials could confirm only 24 dead. More than 100 people were injured, with reports as high as 160.

The number of missing was unclear. Israeli authorities had a list of about 100 people who had not yet checked in, said Maj. Gen. Yair Naveh, head of the Israeli Home Front Command.

Israelis fled the Sinai by the thousands Friday, and authorities across the border in the Israeli city of Eilat put them up in community centers while they arranged to get home. Many tourists complained bitterly about Egyptian authorities who they said initially prevented them from leaving their hotels.

The 10 p.m. explosion at the Hilton sheared outer rooms off a 10-story wing. The attack was quickly followed by two more car bombings outside beach-bungalow camps south of Taba.

In Washington, a U.S. counterterrorism official, discussing intelligence on the condition of anonymity, said American officials suspected — but weren’t certain — that al-Qaida had a role in the bombings.

The coordinated bombings show a level of sophistication that fits al-Qaida’s usual operational style, the official said. Not ruled out are Palestinian groups, such as Hamas, or local Egyptian militant groups, the official said. One significant Egyptian group, Egyptian Islamic Jihad, merged with al-Qaida several years ago; its leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, is now Osama bin Laden’s top deputy. The Egypt-based Islamic Group also has ties to al-Qaida.