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155 houses affected by Sibolga bomb blast
About 155 houses in Sibolga, North Sumatra, were damaged and some destroyed by a bomb that exploded on Wednesday, according to Sibolga Mayor Syarfi Hutauruk
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span>About 155 houses in Sibolga, North Sumatra, were damaged and some destroyed by a bomb that exploded on Wednesday, according to Sibolga Mayor Syarfi Hutauruk.
The bomb was apparently detonated by Solimah, the wife of suspected terrorist Abu Hamzah aka Husein, while the police were try to persuade her to surrender following Husein’s arrest.
“You can imagine how powerful the bomb was if it could [affect] 155 houses. Luckily, the National Police’s Densus 88 counterterrorism squad had already evacuated residents before the explosion,” Syarfi said on Sunday.
He added that the incident had resulted in 166 families becoming homeless. In response, Syarfi said, he would coordinate with the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) to help rebuild and repair damaged houses.
“Apart from money, the city administration has also been giving rice, instant noodles, drinking water and eggs to affected families,” said Syarfi who added that his team had also given Rp 1 million (US$70) to each family.
Prior to the explosion, Densus 88 had arrested Husein, who is allegedly linked to the Islamic State (IS) group. Not long after that, his wife, Solimah, had reportedly thrown a homemade bomb at police officers and locals who had entered her house.
Naim, a resident who was injured by the bomb, said he had gone to Husein’s house after he had heard that police officers were approaching the neighborhood.
When he arrived at the location, police officers asked him to persuade Solimah to leave the house but they were instead welcomed with a pipe bomb.
“When the bomb went off, I was instantly knocked back [by the explosion] and got hurt. At the time, many of our [neighbors] had already been hurt but police officers nearest to the house and I had the most severe wounds,” said Naim who is currently being treated at a hospital in Sibolga.
The experience, he said, had traumatized him as he was now “easily startled by the slightest bang”.
Following the first explosion, Solimah allegedly detonated another bomb after a 10-hour stand-off with the police at her other house, killing herself and her child in the process.
As of Sunday, Densus 88 had arrested six suspects linked to the terrorist attack, including Asmir Khoir aka Ameng and Halimah, as well as three women identified as R, M and YS. They were arrested in different parts of the country.
