|
|
Bomb-like explosions in Ambon injure 51
|
Reuters
Sat Jul 27,10:00 AM ET
|
Bomb-like explosions in Ambon injure 51
By Soraya Permatasari
JAKARTA (Reuters) - Powerful
bomb-like explosions hit Indonesia's troubled city of Ambon on
Saturday, injuring 51 people, 10 of them seriously, a local
official said on Saturday.
Martin Djari, chief official at
Ambon's information department, told Reuters there was more than
one blast and they struck around 10:30 a.m. local time (0130 GMT).
"It's so sad. The explosions
happened at Mardika, a busy shopping area... Many people have been
injured," he said.
He was speaking by phone from Ambon,
2,300 km east of Jakarta and the major hub in the Moluccas
islands, where Muslim-Christian violence has killed at least 5,000
people in the past three years.
Any major outbreak of violence in
Ambon, or elsewhere in the islands, could threaten a landmark
peace deal signed in February. The deal has held relatively well
by Indonesian standards.
"Looking at the type of
wounds...there is a big possibility they were caused by bombs.
We're still investigating," Djari said. "Police and army
have secured the area."
A local journalist said the wounded
included a one-year-old baby and a four-year-old girl.
"The baby was still crying and
bleeding but I guess she is better now. But some others were so
badly injured that the doctors said their legs must be
amputated."
Eka Lumalesi, the mother of the
four-year-old girl, was also hospitalised. She was suffering from
burn injuries and metal fragments blown into her back by the
blast.
"I heard explosions, then I
remembered my daughter and went looking for her. I saw people
running around in panic and people were falling down around me.
Suddenly, I felt very hot, the next thing I knew I was brought
here," she said.
Most factions involved in the
Moluccas islands fighting signed the peace deal in February, but
tensions remain high and there have been sporadic outbreaks of
violence.
Emergency status -- one level down
from martial law -- is still in place.
The local journalist said the
victims were taken to three nearby hospitals. He said an official
from the bomb squad had told him the explosions were caused by low
explosive bombs.
The Moluccas chain is one of
several flashpoints where separatist, communal or religious
tensions pose a challenge to Jakarta's efforts to maintain order
and convince investors and aid donors that Indonesia's vast
archipelago is stable.
|
