Flights suspended to Ambon amid renewed fighting

Flights suspended to Ambon amid renewed fighting

JAKARTA (JP): The authorities halted for an indefinite period
commercial flights to the riot-torn Maluku capital of Ambon on
Tuesday, due to renewed clashes between Muslims and Christians
that have killed at least 100 people and injured 400 others since
late last month.

J.A. Hallatu, acting head of the local office of the
communications ministry, said on Wednesday the flights were
halted for security reasons following clashes last weekend in
Laha village, near Pattimura Airport, some 30 kilometers across
Ambon Bay.

Hallatu said command of the airport was transferred on Tuesday
from civilian director Ramli Sangaji to Pattimura air base
commander Lt. Col. Iskandar.

He also said that dozens of airport employees had been
evacuated to Jakarta by a Hercules military plane on Wednesday
morning following an attack on their dormitory on Tuesday.

Hallatu added that staff of state-owned Merpati Nusantara
Airlines had also been evacuated from the city.

Privately owned Mandala Airlines temporarily halted its
service to Ambon last week.

Meanwhile, one battalion of troops from West Java and the
South Sumatra capital of Palembang arrived in Ambon on Wednesday
to replace troops who had been stationed there for three months.

Maluku Military Commander Brig. Gen. Max Tamaella said the
fresh troops were assigned to rebuild hundreds of houses burned
down or damaged during the violence.

Witnesses said Ambon was calm on Wednesday, but sporadic
clashes were still taking place outside the city in Wai, Liang,
Laha and Tawiri villages.

Road blocks were still in place in a number of volatile
neighborhoods. Marines and Army troops were seen clearing some
road blocks from the streets.

Witnesses said earlier that barricades were set up following
the shootings of a number of residents by a group of unidentified
armed men last week.

Meanwhile, Antara said at least two people from the Kudamati
area were injured in a mob attack on Wednesday.

The news agency said Julianus Tuhumuri, 67, and Damianus
Labetubun, 54, suffered slash wounds and were still being treated
at Haulusi General Hospital.

Two battalions of reinforcements from the Army's Strategic
Reserves Command (Kostrad) in Central Java arrived in Ambon on a
naval ship earlier this month.

The military said there were four battalions of reinforcements
in Ambon from outside the province.

One battalion of marines arrived in Ambon late last month
after renewed violence between Muslims and Christians erupted on
July 27.

The upsurge in violence has forced more than 34,000 people to
seek shelter at 35 locations in the city, including mosques,
churches and military barracks, and prompted thousands of others
to flee to other provinces.

More than 400 people have been killed in communal clashes in
the province since the violence first erupted in Ambon in mid-
January.

In the South Sulawesi capital of Ujungpandang, dozens of
Muslim students protested in front of the local legislature and
military command headquarters demanding an end to violence in
Ambon. (27/48/byg)