Bomb attack on Indonesia police fails

Poso, June 3 – A suicide bomber riding a motorbike on Monday attacked a police station in a central Indonesian town known as a terror hotbed, but failed to claim any casualties in the explosion, police said.

 

The man forced his way into the main police station in Poso, on Sulawesi Island, and detonated the explosives between the entrance and a mosque in the compound, said local police spokesperson Soemarno.

 

"A civilian forced himself into the police station on his motorbike and blew himself up," said Soemarno, who like many Indonesians goes by one name. No one was killed or injured other than the attacker, he added.

 

A police source said the man was suspected of being part of an Islamic terror group headed by Santoso, Indonesia's most wanted militant, that has conducted a series of attacks in the area.

 

The jungles around Poso are known as a hideout for militants who regularly attack the security forces.

 

The area was also the site of sectarian violence between Muslims and Christians between the late 1990s and mid-2000s that left thousands dead.

 

Last year, police carried out a series of raids against militants around Poso, shooting dead and arresting a string of terror suspects.

 

Indonesia has waged a crackdown on terror groups over the past decade following attacks against Western targets, including the 2002 Bali bombings – a campaign that has been credited with weakening key networks.

 

Recent attacks have tended to be low-impact and target Indonesian security forces.

 

 AFP