AMBON, Indonesia, 27 April 2004 — Fresh clashes erupted yesterday between Muslims and Christians in Indonesia’s eastern city of Ambon and officials said the death toll from two days of violence had risen to 23.
In the latest violence, a mob of men, many of them wielding knives, attacked dozens of woman and children as they disembarked from a ship at Ambon’s main port, residents said, but there were no reports of anyone killed in the attack.
“Some children were hurt but so far we have received no reports of death,” one government official told Reuters from Ambon city.
A nurse at the city’s Bhakti Rahayu Hospital said dozens of children and woman were hurt, including one elderly woman who suffered serious injuries.
Police were not available for comment and it was not clear if the mob was made up of Christians or Muslims.
Earlier, a city official said the death toll in the violence that erupted on Sunday was 23. Officials put the number of wounded at about 140. It was unclear if any of the deaths were from the fresh clashes or from fighting the previous day.
Police have sent 200 reinforcements to Ambon, 2,300 km east of Jakarta. More police and two army battalions are also expected to arrive soon.
Evening drizzle put out fires from buildings and houses torched by rampaging mobs in Ambon, once a scenic seaside town, which now partly lies in ruins following years of sectarian violence.
