Houses damaged in Cirebon brawl

Houses damaged in Cirebon brawl

CIREBON, West Java: A number of houses and public facilities
were damaged and several people injured in a brawl between
residents from two villages in Cirebon regency, West Java, on
Sunday.

The situation in the neighboring villages of Keraton and
Sirnabaya remained tense on Sunday evening, with outsiders
becoming subject to suspicion.

There were no reports of casualties, but at least nine youths
were being questioned by police in relation to the incident.

"The nine perpetrators have been taken to the Cirebon Police
office as part of an intensive investigation," Cirebon Police
chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Musyafak said.

Local residents said the brawl, involving hundreds of people,
broke out midnight Saturday and ended six hours later early
Sunday.

It was not clear what triggered the unrest. However, the clash
was believed to be motivated by long-standing hatred among
residents in the villages.

Several months ago, a similar clash erupted in the same
village due to a trivial matter.

Sunday's brawl caused intense panic among local residents as
those from both sides involved in the fighting carried sharp
weapons, such as knives, machetes and arrows, as well as stones.

The clash ended after dozens of police officers from the
subdistricts of Kapetakan and North Cirebon were deployed to the
villages. --Antara