Foreign Policy Blogs

New Jakarta Hotel Bombings

_46073530_policeritz_afpAt approximately 8AM in Kuningan, Jakarta, simultaneous bombs detonated at the Marriott and  Ritz-Carlton Hotels.  At least 8 people have been killed in the blasts and over 100 wounded.  At least a dozen foreigners were injured, including citizens of Australia, Norway,  South Korea, and India.

During a press conference, recently re-elected Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, blamed the attacks on a terrorist group, but did not give any specific details.  During his tenure, Yudhoyono has received international praise for the anti-terrorism efforts his government has undertaken.

No group has yet taken responsibility for the attacks, but some police officials are blaming Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), an Islamic terror network in Southeast Asia that has also been implicated in a recent series of  bombings in the PhilippinesAustralian security analysts believe a radical splinter group of younger JI members is responsible.  The Australian government has worked closely with Indonesia on anti-terror operations since 88 of its citizens were killed in Bali in 2002.

The Bali attack was JI’s largest ,  killing over 200 people in two separate nightclubs.  The group has also been held responsible for the 2003 suicide bombing of the same Jakarta Marriott attacked today.  That attack killed 12 people and wounded 150.

There have been over a dozen hotel bombings in the last 6 years, foreigners are thought to be the primary targets, but attacks had been on the decline.   Some analyst speculate that the Indonesian government crackdown on Islamic radicalism may have persuaded older members of JI to refrain from using bombings as a political tool, which has put them at odds with younger followers.

More analysis from Harry Tjan, the Chair of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), courtesy of the BBC.