ABC AUSTRALIA, 28/04/2004 18:52:00
Uneasy calm after clashes in Indonesia's Ambon
Some schools and markets have reopened in Indonesia's eastern region of Ambon in
Maluku province, despite sporadic sniping in one district.
Police have put the death toll from four days of clashes between Christians and
Muslims in Ambon City at 36.
More than 150 people have been injured.
The violence was the worst since a pact in February 2002 ended three years of
sectarian fighting in the area, which killed about 5,000 people.
At least 200 homes and many other buildings, including the United Nations mission,
were set ablaze on the weekend.
The UN has temporarily withdrawn some staff.
Islamic militant warns of possible intervention
An Islamic militant leader in Indonesia has threatened to send fighters to Ambon if the
government fails to prevent renewed sectarian violence there from spreading.
The government has deployed hundreds of troops and police to the area since the
weekend clashes.
However, the leader of the formerly disbanded Laskar Jihad group, Jaafar Umar Thalib,
says he is continuing to monitor developments and will intervene if necessary.
"We wait and the [if] government can't handle it and the riots spread... of course, I will
think and will jump again to help the unitary state of Indonesia," he said.
Laskar Jihad sent thousands of fighters to the Ambon region four years ago, inflaming
the existing sectarian conflict.
28/04/2004 18:52:00 | ABC Radio Australia News
© 2001 Australian Broadcasting Corporation |
