Five killed in fresh violence

AMBON, Maluku: Fresh violence broke out in Ambon, killing five people and injuring two others, officials said on Monday.

Ambon Sector security chief Col. N.G. Sugiartha said on Monday a huge bomb explosion took place at an abandoned house in the Ahuru area in Waihoka subdistrict, Sirimau at 5:55 p.m. on Sunday.

"The house apparently was used as a base to assemble bombs and weaponry ... after the explosion, troops from 521/Brawijaya battalion and locals inspected the site and found five corpses in front of the blasted house," the officer said.

The officer said that, judging from the victims' position at the time they were found, it was likely that the men were thrown by the blast from the second floor.

"The center of the blast was on the second floor and we found two survivors suffering from bomb shrapnel wounds in the incident," the officer said.

All victims were evacuated to Al Fatah Islamic Hospital in the Waehaong area, around five kilometers from Ahuru, officer Sugiartha added.

Authorities seized a series of bomb-assembling devices, weaponry and cash from the site of the blast.

Among the evidence was a MK-1 machine gun, dozens of bullets, 20 bullets for Colt pistols, 99 detonators, four wrappers of assembled bombs, six boxes of matches, gunpowder, bottled chemicals, timers, Rp 2,281,500 cash, documents and bomb-making instructions, a camera, a binocular, several bomb-assembling devices, three military-style backpacks, 18 other backpacks, combat boots, and several T-shirts emblazoned with the text of a certain Muslim group.

All the pieces of physical evidence were taken to Ambon Security Sector office pending further investigation. (49/edt)