posted on Oct, 1 2005 @ 10:42 AM
Typically for intial reports of terrorist bombings, the casualty lists are conflicting. The
Jakarta Post is reporting that 11 dead have been taken to
the Sangla Hospital in Denpasar and another 8 bodies have been taken to the Graha Asih Hospital.
There seem to be at least 51 additional wounded, with Indonesians and Australians topping the list.
South-East Asian terrorist network Jemaah Islamiah is already being suggested as the likely candidate, given their pledge to carry out yearly attacks
around the anniversary of the 2002 Bali Bombings which killed 202 people
(
Reference - The Age). The explosive devices
used in these attacks are said to have been significantly less powerful then those used during the 2002 attacks, although conflicting reports are
claiming that as many as 6 bombs have exploded. Current reliable reports have only made mention of 3 explosions, however.
I wish I could say that this will lead to some type of reaction on the part of the Indonesian government, but I am not optimistic. The Indonesian
government needs to realise that attacks of this type cannot continue and needs to take immediate and decisive action. Jemaah Islamiah's members and
supporters need to be hunted down and arrested and its training facilities need to be eradicated. If the Indonesian government is incapable of doing
this on its own, then it needs to ask Australia for assistance. As the largest Muslim country in the world, Indonesia is in a uniquely favourable
position to demonstrate to the world that an Islamic society can exist peacefully without tolerating extremism. I wonder how serious the attacks have
to become before they are spurred into any sort of real action.
Jemaah Islamiah's continued existence only adds to regional instability. They must be annihilated and I have no desire to wait for an attack on
Australian soil before this is accomplished.
[edit on 1/10/05 by Jeremiah25]