Bomb explosions, arson rock troubled Aceh

BANDA ACEH, Aceh (JP): A series of bomb and arson attacks on government and police offices continued in the restive Aceh province on Friday, with the Darul Imarah Police station in Aceh Besar regency and the Banda Aceh office of religious affairs the targets.

Banda Aceh Police operational department spokesman Supt. Y. Suyatmo said on Friday there were no immediate reports of fatalities in the latest incidents, but predicted the attacks had caused a material loss to the country of hundreds of millions of rupiah.

He accused the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) of being responsible for the latest bomb attack on the Darul Imarah Police station.

"We found a cable used to detonate the bomb from a distance of some 500 meters away," Suyatmo said.

Suyatmo also said that an arson attack was carried out on the local office of religious affairs in Kampung Mulia village, Banda Aceh, by a group of unidentified men.

"They poured gasoline inside the office," he said.

No fatalities or significant damage were reported.

Aceh Besar GAM commander Abu Tazurra confirmed the movement planted a bomb at the Darul Imarah Police station and others along the main streets in the area, but denied any involvement in the arson attack on the Banda Aceh religious affairs office.

A series of bomb and arson attacks have damaged and demolished seven government offices in Banda Aceh and several police and military district commands over the past few weeks.

Previously, on Sept. 12, a homemade bomb exploded at the provincial council building. Two days after the incident, another explosion rocked a building at a housing complex of the local office of the Environmental Impact Management Agency and the National Land Agency in Kampung Mulia village.

On Friday last week, the city public works office on Jl. Pemancar in Setui area was burned down.

Earlier, on Monday, bomb attacks erupted at two separate places in Banda Aceh mayoralty -- the Syiah Kuala district religious affairs office and the National Family Planning Coordinating Board in Baet village.

On the same day, a security guard managed to deactivate a homemade bomb planted in Peukan Bada district's administration office in Aceh Besar regency.

In a separate development, Suyatmo said two trucks carrying logs and palm oil were intercepted on Friday by 10 people armed with long rifles.

"The armed civilians ordered the truck drivers to take them to the nearby village of Lameue, where they forced the two to unload the cargo. They abandoned the drivers there.

"The armed gang took the trucks and left the village, heading to Meulaboh town in West Aceh," he said. (50/lup)