Further violence in the Moluccas
There were several outbreaks of violence in the Moluccas yesterday (Tuesday). The missionary news service report that in the morning, a speedboat full of Christians was attacked by a Muslim boat - leaving three dead and four injured. Later, at around 11am, a bomb exploded at an electronics shop in the city centre. The Christian shop owner, Paulina Shong Ling, 55, and her 29 year-old son Roby Thebez were killed. A further 19 people were injured, some very seriously. On the same morning, a man on a motorbike threw a grenade into the cabin of a truck on the way to Ambon. The driver managed to kick it out in time, but the grenade exploded on the road, injuring a passing Muslim university student. Local Muslims, assuming the driver had intended to attack the student, retaliated by stopping and setting fire to a minibus carrying 11 passengers. Two people were injured. In recent months, a reconciliation process between Christians and Muslims on the islands, has begun, after nearly two years of violence in which more than 8,000 have died.