Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Jakarta metropolitan police chief Inspector General Sutarman hinted here Tuesday that a number of parcel bombs that scared Jakartans might also have come from outside the city.

In helping the police detect the whereabouts of the terrorists, the function of those also taking part in securing the safety of the people and order the agency to raise its alertness, he said.

In connection with this purpose, 800 members of the security police personnel and members of other security agencies were gathered here to be upgraded to enable them to secure their respective neighborhoods, he said.

"With good early detection capabilities, the terror suspects` whereabouts can be traced, he said.

A series of bomb threats had rocked parts of Indonesia over the past few weeks.

A Jakarta metropolitan police bomb squad had even detonated a suspicious package that a local resident named Iskandar had received on March 19.

Earlier in the day, the Jakarta metropolitan police also disposed of a package received by Jakarta-based Muhammadiyah University Rector Masyitoh Chusnan.

On March 15, four packages containing books with bombs planted in them were sent to Ulil Abshar Abdalla, activist of the Islam Liberal Network, Goris Mere, the chief of the National Anti-Narcotics Agency, Yapto Soeryosumarno, the chief of the Pancasila Youth organization, and Ahmad Dhani, a musician.

Then, a plastic bag containing a bomb was also found in Cibubur, Bogor district.

A Bank Central Asia (BCA) building at Serpong Road, Banten Province, also received a bomb threat on March 18. On March 19, a church at Titi Papan Road in Medan, North Sumatran province, also received a bomb threat.

In response to these bomb threats, House of Representatives Speaker Marzuki Alie urged the police to immediately unveil the perpetrators of the recent parcel bomb scare so that it would not turn into a political issue.

Indonesia has been fighting terrorist cells in the country since the 2002 Bali bombings that claimed 202 lives, including 88 Australian holiday makers.

Two years before the terrorists attacked the resort island of Bali, Indonesia was rocked by the Christmas eve bombings in 2000.

The latest bombing incident occurred in July 2009. At that time, two suicide bombers simultaneously attacked two luxurious hotels in South Jakarta, killing several people.
(R013/H-AJM)

Editor: Aditia Maruli Radja
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