Police fail to reveal bomb attack masterminds
Police fail to reveal bomb attack masterminds
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Prior to the grenade blast early on Monday morning close to
the U.S.-owned property here that claimed one life, a string of
bomb attacks had already struck Jakarta.
The table below shows that targets, dates and locations of the
attacks are so varied that it is difficult to discern a pattern
from the blasts to predict potential future targets.
The police attributed the attacks to several different groups
and individuals, including the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), radical
Muslim groups and former president Soeharto' son of Hutomo
"Tommy" Mandala Putra, but thus far, they have failed to detect
the real networks or groups masterminding the attacks or unveil
the motives behind them.
Some of the abortive attacks displayed below, especially those
requiring expertise in the use of homemade explosives or
grenades, as in the abortive Bulungan attack, appear to indicate
that some would-be bombers were not explosives experts.
However, even though many bomb attacks were carried out by
amateurs, the impact was devastating and, in some cases, caused a
large number of casualties, creating terror in the capital.
Major bomb attacks in Jakarta (Date; Venue; Casualties;
Status/Penalty):
Aug. 1, 2000: Philippine ambassador's residence, C. Jakarta;
Two dead, 21 injured; Unresolved.
Aug. 27, 2000: Parking lot of Malaysian Embassy, S. Jakarta;
None; Five sentenced, between five and seven years.
Sept. 14, 2000: Basement parking lot of JSX building, S.
Jakarta; 10 dead, 46 injured; Eight people sentenced, between
eight years and life sentence.
Dec. 25, 2000: Outside Santo Yosef church in Matraman, E.
Jakarta. Outside Kanisius church, Cikini, C. Jakarta. Outside a
church in Halim Perdanakusuma, E. Jakarta. Outside the Cathedral
in Pasar Baru, C. Jakarta. Outside the Anglican church in Menteng,
C. Jakarta (defused); Three dead, dozens injured; Unresolved.
May 10, 2001: Acehnese student dormitory, Jl. Perahu, Guntur,
S. Jakarta; Three dead, two injured; Three sentenced, between one
and four years.
June 22, 2001: Boarding house in Pancoran, S. Jakarta; Five
injured; Unresolved.
July 11, 2001: Slipi intersection, W. Jakarta; One dead, 13
injured; Unresolved.
Aug. 1 2001: Atrium Plaza, C. Jakarta; Seven (including
a suspect) injured; Malaysian citizen and an Indonesian
sentenced to death.
Nov. 6, 2001: Australian International School, S. Jakarta;
None; Unresolved.
Jan. 1, 2002: Jl. Bulungan, S. Jakarta; One dead (suspect);
Unresolved.
June 9, 2002: Hotel Jayakarta and Eksotis discotheque; Four
injured; Unresolved.
July, 1, 2002: Graha Cijantung shopping center, E. Jakarta;
Six injured; Unresolved.
Sep. 23, 2002: Jl. Teluk Betung, C.Jakarta, near U.S.-owned
property; One dead; Unresolved.