Early morning blast near UN office

M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A pipe bomb exploded on Thursday morning on Jl. Wahid Hasyim in Central Jakarta behind the United Nations building, slightly damaging a pedestrian bridge but causing no injuries.

Jakarta Police chief of detectives Comr. Gen. Erwin Mappaseng told reporters at the scene that the explosion was caused by a low-explosive device that appeared to have been assembled by nonprofessionals.

"It went off early in the morning at 5:20 a.m. and only resulted in a 30-centimeter crater by the bridge that crosses Kali Krukut," Erwin said, referring to a creek that runs behind the UN building.

The officer said the bomb was constructed from low explosives placed inside a 34-centimeter-long and 10-centimeter-wide iron pipe. It was wired to a timer and used a motorcycle battery as its power supply.

The police cordoned off part of the two-way Jl. Wahid Hasyim moments after the blast, causing an early morning traffic jam. Traffic on Jl. Thamrin, which runs in front of the UN building, was undisturbed.

Activity at the UN building continued as normal despite the early morning blast. However, security in and around the building was tightened.

Police are questioning 12 people who were in the area when the explosion occurred. So far the 12 are only being considered as witnesses.

"Their accounts of the blast have yet to shed any light on who was responsible for the blast or their motive," said Sr. Adj. Com. Sukrawardi Dahlan, chief of the Central Jakarta Police.

Sukrawardi pledged that the police would find those responsible for the explosion.

The blast took place one day after police arrested 18 members of the regional terror network Jamaah Islamiyah (JI). It also occurred the day after the treason trial of the network's alleged leader, Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, opened.

Thursday's explosion also occurred two days after the detention of Habib Rizieq Shihab, a militant Muslim cleric who faces trial for attacks on nightspots and bars by his followers in the Islam Defenders Front (FPI).

Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Makbul Padmanagara said that by setting off the bomb near the UN building, the perpetrators had hoped to spread fear among the populace.

Based on how the device was assembled, Makbul said police assumed the bomb was of the same type as used in the Feb. 3, 2003, explosion at Wisma Bhayangkara inside the compound of the National Police Headquarters in South Jakarta.