Mobs riot after Indonesia executes 3
Christians
Associated Press
PALU, Indonesia
- Three Christian militants were executed by firing
squad early today for leading attacks on Muslims six years ago
that left at least 70 people dead, sparking fresh sectarian
clashes on restive Sulawesi island, police said.
Mobs torched cars and police posts in several villages before
security forces restored order, said Poso police chief Maj. Rudy
Sufahriyadi. Elsewhere they blockaded roads and threw stones at
houses and government offices. At least three people were hurt.
Fabianus Tibo, 60, Marinus Riwu, 48, and Dominggus da Silva,
42, were found guilty of leading a Christian militia in a series
of attacks in May 2000 - including a machete and gun assault on
an Islamic school where dozens of men were seeking shelter.
The case against the three has heightened tensions in the
world's most populous Muslim nation. Only a handful of Muslims
were convicted in the same violence in 2000, all for 15 years in
prison or less.
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