Paradise island hit again

Paradise island hit again

The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali

At least 23 people, including foreigners, were killed and 90
others injured when a fresh terror attack rocked Bali on
Saturday, nearly three years after bombs hit the famous resort
island.

As of midnight local time, Sanglah General Hospital in
Denpasar had received 13 bodies, while another 10 bodies were
received at the private Graha Asih Hospital, mostly Indonesians,
also in the Bali capital.

Among the casualties were an Australian and a Japanese.
Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer confirmed the death
of at least one Australian.

Most of the bodies remained unidentified.

The death toll may well increase as rescue workers also
admitted blast victims to Kasih Ibu Hospital and the Bali
International Medical Center.

The first two blasts went off almost simultaneously at Kafe
Nyoman and nearby Kafe Menega in a crowded seafood night market
on Jimbaran Beach at around 6.50 p.m. local time, with the third
exploding in Raja's noodle and steak house in downtown Kuta 10
minutes later. Jimbaran and Kuta are about five kilometers apart.

Kuta was the target of major bombings on Oct. 12, 2002, which
left 202 people dead, mainly Australians.

The explosions took place just three days before the major
Hindu festival of Galungan, the celebration of the victory of
good over evil.

The police bomb squad who combed the blast sites discovered
four more bombs which failed to explode.

Antara reported that three smaller explosions had also
occurred.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono summoned his top security
officials shortly after the attacks and ordered them to increase
vigilance across the country.

Steve Kendall, one of the survivors, said he and his family
were having a dinner in Jimbaran when the first bomb went off.

"We heard a gigantic sound and we immediately ran out of the
restaurant," he said. Kendall had to undergo surgery to remove
metal shrapnel from his hand, while his wife suffered wounds to
her head.

The family had just arrived from Jakarta.

"It was a carnage, I couldn't believe it," said a leader of
the Kuta community, Bagiana Karang, who rushed to the blast sites
in Jimbaran.

A local Muslim figure who helped victims of the 2002 bombings,
Agus Bambang P, was among public figures who coordinated rescue
efforts.

Bali Police chief Insp. Gen. Mangku Pastika led the
preliminary investigation, bringing with him the bomb squad and a
forensic team.

"It's too early to conclude anything. Give me more time to
gather information," he said.

Two officers of the Australian Federal Police were helping
with the investigation.

The ground floor of the three-story Raja's noodle and steak
house in the crowded Kuta Square Arcade shopping center was
shattered, with doors torn off and chairs and tables destroyed as
a result of the blast.

The explosion also shattered windows and glass panels on
dozens of stores and buildings nearby. Glass shards and broken
metal littered the sidewalk.

Sutikno Soedarjo, a business executive associated with the
Bali Hard Rock Cafe and Four Seasons Villas, told the Post the
two establishments were unaffected by the explosions.

The anxiety and uncertainty that engulfed the island was
further aggravated by the breakdown in the cellular phone
network, which prevented security officers, medical personnel and
journalists from relaying necessary information to their
colleagues.

With additional reporting by Rita Widiadana, I Wayan Juniartha
and Wahjoe Boediwardhana.