La Paz/Caracas  - An elite Bolivian police squad killed three members of an alleged terrorist group Thursday at a hotel in the city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra.

Bolivian President Evo Morales saif from the Venezuelan city of Cumana that the dead were foreign "mercenaries" who were planning attacks on Morales himself and other high government officials.

The Santa Cruz daily El Deber reported in its online edition, citing national Police Chief Victor Hugo Escobar, that the three dead included one Bolivian with a Hungarian and a Colombian.

Two other suspects were arrested, Bolivian authorities said. Explosives and weapons were seized in the raid, Morales said.

The group was suspected of having perpetrated a bomb attack against the Santa Cruz residence of Archbishop Julio Terraza, who backs the opposition to left-wing populist Morales.

"Those terrorists were going to try to kill the vice president and Evo Morales," said Morales, flanked by presidents Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and Raul Castro of Cuba.

In La Paz, Bolivian Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera said that police responded with lethal force after coming under gunfire as they moved to arrest the group. (dpa)