Four people killed in fresh Ambon violence

Four people killed in fresh Ambon violence

Oktavianus Pinontoan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A Christian man was killed when a mob set his van on fire in
the restive town of Ambon, Maluku, on Sunday after three Muslim
females were shot dead in Kulur village, Saparua island, Central
Maluku.

Unidentified gunmen aboard a speedboat sprayed bullets at the
coastal village of Kulur early on Sunday, killing a women and two
girls. The victims were identified as Miftaul Ulung, 23, Fatimah
Tuhulele, 11, and Fitria Litiloli, 11.

Their bodies were taken to Al Fatah Mosque at Batumerah
subdistrict, Ambon, setting emotions high among Muslims in Ambon,
especially those originating from Kulur.

People then set alight the passing van in the city's
predominantly Muslim sector of Galunggung, killing its driver,
identified as Dany Matulessy.

To prevent the violence from spreading, security personnel
blocked roads leading to Al Fatah Mosque, and guarded along
streets dividing the Muslim and Christian communities in Ambon.

The local police could not be immediately reached for comment.
Meanwhile, the head of local Army office, Col. Hudawi Lubis,
said: "We have closed the roads to avoid further incidents."

Some, nevertheless, speculated that the attack on Kulur
village was part of an effort to renew the interreligious
violence in Maluku as Kulur borders the Christian village of
Porto.

Last Thursday, a bomb exploded at a stadium in Ambon,
instantly killing three high school girls who were doing
exercises in the stadium. Another girl died later at the
hospital.

Maluku has been the scene of fighting between Muslims and
Christians that has left more than 6,000 dead since 1999. Tens of
thousands of others have fled their villages for safer places.

Maluku had remained relatively calm after representatives of
the Muslim and Christian communities met and signed a peace
agreement at the South Sulawesi resort town of Malino last
February.

Although clashes between Muslims and Christians had not
happened since the signing of the peace accord, explosions,
shootings and other killings have continued to occur in Ambon and
other parts of Maluku.