Indonesia Riots Kill 24
Religious violence spread in eastern Indonesia Thursday when rioting among Christians and Muslims flared for a third straight day. At least 24 people have been killed in clashes on two islands and fighting erupted on a third, police said.
It was the latest violence in a series of bloody outbursts to hit predominantly Muslim Indonesia and was the worst single incident since rioting in Jakarta in May killed about 1,200 people.
Thousands of police and troops were flown in to restore order after mosques, churches, and houses were set on fire. Almost 3,000 residents were sheltered at military camps and police stations.
"This violence is purely criminal in nature and has no political background to it," said National police chief Lieut. Gen. Roesmanhadi.
Roesmanhadi said 88 homes, three mosques, and three churches were torched in Ambon during the rioting.
"We all are frightened now," said one woman who identified herself by the single name of Rosdiana. "We are getting out with our children. The men will stay behind to guard our houses."
The worst carnage occurred on Ambon Island, 1,400 miles northeast of Jakarta, where 22 people have been killed since Tuesday.
People were stabbed, beaten, or trapped in burning buildings, an officer at Ambon's main hospital said. Some were attacked with rocks, machetes, clubs, and bows and arrows. Police said 134 people were injured.
Two people burned to death during a riot Wednesday night on Sanana Island, about 185 miles northwest of Ambon. Police imposed a nighttime curfew after Muslim mobs burned two churches and many houses owned by Christians, said Sanana police Sgt. Parno.
About 90 percent of Indonesia's 202 million people are Muslim, making it the world's most populous Islamic country. However, Ambon, Sanana and Seram Island, where two churches were burned, have large Christian populations.
The sprawling Southeast Asian nation is grappling with its worst economic crisis in three decades. Soaring inflation, unemployment and poverty rates have increased social tensions.
Outbreaks of rioting and looting, along with clashes among rival followers of rival faiths, have escalated in Indonesia since student protests and unrest forced President Suharto to step down last May.
During his authoritarian 32-year rule, Suharto ruthlessly used the military to crack down on lawlessness and dissent. But since his departure, the armed forces have found it increasingly difficult to control disorder while fending off allegations of past human rights abuses.
The rioting started on Ambon Tuesday night after Muslims attacked a man from a neighboring Christian-dominated village. They accused him of being drunk and of insulting their Islamic beliefs.
Sporadic fighting continued after 3,000 riot police and troops were deployed, including many who were flown in from other islands.
The riots started during one of the hliest feasts on the Islamic calendar, Eid al-Fitr, which comes at the end of the holy month of Ramadan and is supposed to be a time of peace and reconciliation.
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