Dili police seize fire bombs

DILI, East Timor: Police seized more than 50 fire bombs and a long-barrel rifle from a house in Keluhun village near here over the weekend.

The police are still tracking the suspected makers and owners of the bombs and the rifle, said the chief of the Udayana regional military command, Maj. Gen. Abdul Rifai who oversees security in Bali, Nusa Tenggara and East Timor.

He said he had information that the suspects planned to use the weapons in Dili on May 25.

"We have the names of the makers and owners of the bombs as well as those who have designed rioting in Dili," Rivai was quoted as saying by Antara .

He said the suspects were people opposed to the 1976 integration of East Timor into Indonesia. "We will take harsh action against anyone that means to trigger chaos."

Meanwhile, East Timor military chief Col. Mahidin Simbolon said that security authorities also confiscated flags and T- shirts made by pro-independence activists with the inscription "Free Xanana".

Xanana Gusmao is a rebel leader now serving a 20-year jail term in a Jakarta prison. (pan)