Outsiders blamed for Poso bombings

PALU, Central Sulawesi: Police here blamed on Saturday "outsiders" for the bombings in the riot-torn town of Poso in Central Sulawesi after a peace deal was signed last December.

"A certain group is trying to worsen the situation in Poso through bombings," Central Sulawesi Police detective chief Sr. Comr. Tatang Sumantri said.

He said that based on the local police investigation, the group had nothing to do with Muslims and Christians involved in sectarian fighting in Poso, which killed some 2,000 people in two years since it erupted in 2000.

Tatang could not, however, identify the group he attributed to the bombing incidents over the last five months, saying nor was it linked with to the religious conflict in the Maluku islands.

The latest bomb blasts occurred last Tuesday and Wednesday at three separate locations in Poso.

No casualties were reported. However, at least four electronics stores in the town's Kayamanya market were destroyed by fire as a result of the explosion. --Antara