2 arrested over recent deadly blast in Ambon<\/p>\n
Oktovianus Pinontoan and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post,
\nAmbon\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Police in Ambon are questioning two civilians in connection with
\na deadly bomb blast in a stadium on Thursday as the situation in
\nthe violence-torn city slowly returned to normal.<\/p>\n
Military sources told The Jakarta Post on Friday that security
\npersonnel arrested a man, Mardi, and a woman, Since, almost
\nimmediately after the blast, which claimed the lives of four
\npeople, including three girls aged between 12 and 17.<\/p>\n
Mardi, allegedly from Malino in Gowa regency, South Sulawesi,
\nwas arrested as he ran away after the bomb went off in Merdeka
\nSports Stadium. Since, a native of Ambon, was being held for
\nquestioning after allegedly inciting people to attack a rival
\ngroup immediately after the blast.<\/p>\n
\"(Mardi) is being questioned as a witness,\" an intelligence
\nsource told the Post.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the situation in the city of Ambon was slowly
\nreturning to normal on Friday, with people from both Muslim and
\nChristian communities mixing with one another. Activities in the
\npublic market and public transportation services had also
\nreturned to normal.<\/p>\n
On Friday, the local Protestant church celebrated a peaceful
\nanniversary, showing that neither side had been provoked by the
\nblast.<\/p>\n
The death toll from Thursday's blast rose to four on Friday
\nwhen a 20-year-old woman, who had sustained serious injuries from
\nthe explosion, died in hospital overnight.<\/p>\n
The victims were young athletes training in preparation for
\nthe national student games. They were taking a break when the
\nbomb exploded.<\/p>\n
Eight other people were also injured in the explosion at
\nMerdeka Stadium in downtown Ambon.<\/p>\n
Thursday's powerful bomb explosion came just one day after
\nMuslims and Christians there performed a pela gandong ceremony as
\na symbol of peace to end the three-year sectarian conflict.<\/p>\n
In Jakarta, high-ranking officials suspected that the bomb had
\nbeen planted by outsiders who wished to prolong the bloody
\nviolence between the two warring groups.<\/p>\n
\"There are people, outside the two groups, who want to
\ndestabilize the country. Maybe it came from our own people, maybe
\nnot,\" Vice President Hamzah Haz said on Friday.<\/p>\n
He said that he was waiting for a report from local officers
\nregarding the latest situation in Ambon.<\/p>\n
\"I expect the security officers to immediately hold a thorough
\ninvestigation to find those responsible for the violence,\" Hamzah
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
In Medan, North Sumatra, National Police chief Gen. Da'i
\nBachtiar said that he had ordered his officers to find the
\nperpetrators.<\/p>\n
\"Whoever did it was a savage,\" he said.<\/p>\n
However, he stopped short from explaining why the police
\nremained at a loss to prevent the incidents.<\/p>\n
Like most bombings in Ambon, the police have yet to identify
\nthe mastermind behind the string of attacks.<\/p>",
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