Ambon still tense after outburst of violence on Friday<\/p>\n
AMBON, Maluku (JP): As the death toll climbed to 12, Ambon
\nremained tense over the weekend following the latest outburst of
\nviolence on Friday.<\/p>\n
Some natural intervention helped cool down the situation on
\nSunday as rain soaked the largely empty city streets.<\/p>\n
Security personnel continued to patrol the town, keeping a
\nwatchful eye on those areas prone to clashes.<\/p>\n
\"Thank god it's been raining all day. People can't go out of
\ntheir houses and the situation is relatively calmer than the
\nprevious day,\" a resident told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Ambon Police chief Lt. Col. Ghufron said on Saturday four of
\nthe 62 people injured in Friday's clashes died at Al Fatah
\nIslamic Hospital, raising the death toll from the incident to 12.<\/p>\n
Among those seriously injured in the violence were two
\nsecurity personnel.<\/p>\n
\"They were victims of homemade weapons used by the rioters,\"
\nGhufron said here on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Witnesses said violence erupted when a mob was prevented from
\nattacking government buildings by security personnel.<\/p>\n
Tos Diaz of Maranatha Church said the clashes on Friday
\noccurred in three separate locations.<\/p>\n
\"They did not occur simultaneously, but one after another,\" he
\ntold the Post on Sunday by telephone.<\/p>\n
He also said he thought the number of casualties could be much
\nhigher than reported by officials.<\/p>\n
The initial incident took place in front of the Kota Police
\nstation on Jl. A.Y. Patti, near Jl. Sultan Hairun.<\/p>\n
A deployment of marines reportedly were able to disperse the
\ncrowd by firing warning shots into the air, but the mob then
\ngathered in the Simpang area, near a mosque, where they clashed
\nwith residents.<\/p>\n
\"For the last two days, we have heard gunshots and blasts
\n(from explosive devices) in the distance,\" Teta, a resident
\nliving near Mardika, said.<\/p>\n
In Jakarta, the Indonesian Ulemas Council on Sunday condemned
\nthe shootings near the Al-Fatah Mosque and accused the military
\nand police of being involved in an interreligious conflict which
\nthey were supposed to stop.<\/p>\n
\"The council deeply regrets the measures taken by military and
\npolice personnel and demand that the incident be thoroughly
\ninvestigated, because security personnel are obliged to protect
\nthe people,\" council secretary-general Nazri Adhlani was quoted
\nby Antara as saying.<\/p>\n
The council also urged the government and military to end the
\nprolonged violence in Ambon.<\/p>\n
\"It is likely that the conflicts in Ambon will never be
\nsettled because the roots of the problem have not been completely
\ninvestigated, like the issues of separatism and the supply of
\nweapons,\" he said. (emf\/48)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ambon-still-tense-after-outburst-of-violence-on-friday-1447893297",
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