The attack has come at a time when there has been a high alert in Indonesia since the arrest of Aris Sumarsono, the leader of the South East Asian terrorist organization Jemaah Islamiyah in December.
Police deployed in Indonesia after suicide attack
Suicide Bombing at Church in Indonesia: Two suicide bombers blew themselves up outside a Roman Catholic church during a Sunday prayer meeting on Sulawesi Island in Indonesia. At least 14 people were injured in this incident. Now the police has made a big disclosure about the attackers (Suicide Bombing in Indonesia). Police say that he was related to the pro-Islamic State extremist group. Which has targeted the Church of the Philippines and Indonesia in the past (Indonesia Church Attack). A large number of people were present in the church during the attack.
A video available with news agency AP shows scattered parts of the human body near a lit motorcycle at the entrance of the ‘Sacred Heart of Jesus Cathedral’ in Makassar town in South Sulawesi province. Catholic clergyman Wilhelmus Tulk told reporters that the loud sound of the explosion was heard during the prayer meeting. When the bomb exploded at 10:30 AM, he was leading a prayer meeting on the occasion of the start of the holy week before Easter.
High alert issued in Indonesia
He told that when the explosion occurred, the first group of churchgoers were going out, while the second group was coming inside. The attack comes at a time when Indonesia has been on high alert since the arrest of Aris Sumarsono, the leader of the South East Asian terrorist organization Jemaah Islamia in December. Tulak told that the church security suspects that two people who came on the motorcycle wanted to enter the church (Terrorist Attack in Indonesia). When security personnel tried to stop him, one of them blew himself up.
The injured include security personnel
However, the police later said that both the attackers were killed at the same time and evidence collected from the spot indicated that one of them was a woman. Police said that the injured included devotees coming to the church including four security personnel. President Joko Widodo condemned the attack saying that it has nothing to do with any religion because not all religions support terrorism of any kind (Suicide Bombing in Indonesia). He wished speedy recovery of those injured in the attack and said that the government should bear the cost of their treatment.
Order for investigation of attack
The President ordered the National Police Chief to investigate the attack and take action against any terrorist network involved in it. Meanwhile in the Vatican, Pope Francis prayed for the victims of violence. He specifically mentioned the people injured in the Sunday attacks in Indonesia. National Police Spokesperson Argo Yuvono said at a press conference in the capital Jakarta that police were trying to identify both the attackers, who used powerful explosives.
64 suspects in custody
Indonesia’s Anti-Terrorism Squad detained around 64 suspects in several provinces. These arrests were made after receiving intelligence about the possibility of attacks on police and religious places (Indonesia Bali Attack). Indonesia, the world’s most Muslim-populated country, has been fighting extremists since the 2002 bombings on the island of Bali killed 202 people. Most of the people killed in this attack were foreign tourists. Jemaah Islamiyah was banned by the court in 2008 and the group was weakened in the subsequent action.
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