The Australian
written by Peter Alford
Monday September 26, 2011
INDONESIAN President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has ordered counter-terrorism police to investigate after a suicide bomber killed himself and injured about 20 others outside a church in Solo, Central Java.
The bomb was detonated outside the Bethel Gospel Church, Kepunton, about 11am yesterday as worshippers emerged from a service, killing the bomber and seriously injuring two people. Up to 20 people were taken to hospital, but most had minor injuries.
The bomber had not been identified but police secured a nearby Catholic church, as Dr Yudhoyono called for an investigation by the counter-terrorism unit, Densus 88.
Co-ordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Djoko Suyanto said the President condemned the attack as terrorism. "Nothing can justify this inhuman act," General Djoko told a Solo radio station. "It is the task of everybody to overcome this act of terrorism."
The incident happened as Indonesian prosecutors prepare to try 18 people accused of a bombing campaign around Jakarta earlier this year.
Pepi Fernando, the alleged leader of a previously undetected Muslim radical group, was arrested the day before a cluster of bombs was set to immolate a Christian congregation at Serpong, on Jakarta's western outskirts, on Good Friday.
There has been a surge of interreligious violence in Indonesia this year, often involving Muslim splinter groups and self-radicalised individuals.
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