ABC AUSTRALIA, 27/04/2004 22:20:48
Snipers target paramilitary police in Ambon
Snipers have shot dead two paramilitary policeman and injured a third in the eastern
Indonesian city of Ambon.
There are reports of continuing arson attacks, shootings and explosions.
Our correspondent in Indonesia, Tim Palmer, says the officers had arrived in Ambon
Monday as part of a 200-strong force sent from Jakarta to try to stem two days of
fighting between the city's Muslim and Christian communities.
The killings bring the known death toll to 25, with about 130 people injured since
sectarian battles flared at the weekend after a parade by Christian separatists.
The violence has added to fears that Maluku province is sliding back into communal
chaos that saw 5,000 killed over two years until peace accord in 2002 ended the
fighting.
Muslim extremists in Jakarta have announced plans to send thousands of supporters
to join the fighting.
27/04/2004 22:20:48 | ABC Radio Australia News
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