Police declare full alert nationwide after Bali blasts

Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The National Police went on top alert on Monday after Saturday's Bali bombs, with provincial police chiefs across the country tightening security in a bid to capture the Bali perpetrators and prevent further attacks.

Spokesman Insp. Gen. Aryanto Boedihardjo said National Police chief Gen. Sutanto had instructed all provincial police chiefs to go on full alert.

Jakarta Police earlier increased their security status to full alert on Sunday after the devastating blasts.

"It's up to each regional police chief to prepare their personnel to beef up the security around the country," Aryanto said.

He said the police were teaming up with immigration offices to prevent suspected bombers from fleeing Indonesia.

Officials say the latest bombs show marked similarities to the earlier Bali bombings in 2002, which killed 202 people and were blamed on Malaysian fugitives Azahari bin Husin and Noordin Moh. Top. Both are believed to be members of the Jamaah Islamiyah terror group.

"We can't be sure yet if the bombers are related to them (Azahari and Noordin), but if we look at the pattern of how they always employ suicide bombers to carry out their plan, I have to admit that they are similar," Aryanto said.

However, police could still not be absolutely certain that the three severed heads found at the bomb sites belonged to the bombers, he said.

"We need to confirm this with the forensics lab as we have found traces of bomb materials in their corpses," Aryanto said.

He said police were also analyzing the bomb materials to verify if they were similar to the explosives used in previous blasts.

Aryanto said police had been doing their best to prevent bomb attacks in the country after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono issued a warning of possible attacks in September and October.

"We had tightened the security in closed buildings, such as hotels and malls when the warning came out, but what can we do if the blast happens in open areas like these did? These areas are very vulnerable to attacks," Aryanto said.

He urged restaurant owners and the public to take security measures to anticipate similar incidents in the future.

"We certainly can't put a wall around those open places. It will not be comfortable, especially for holidaymakers. That's why we need everyone's help in this case, so that we can prevent more attacks in the future," Aryanto said.