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