Two suspected suicide bombers blew themselves up outside a Catholic Church in the Indonesian city of Makassar on Sunday, wounding fourteen people on the first day of the Easter Holy Week, the country’s national police said.
The congregation had been inside the Church on the island of Sulawesi at the time of the explosion, South Sulawesi police spokesman, E. Zulphan told Reuters. He said it was unclear whether body parts at the scene were only from the attacker.
Father Wilhemus Tulak, a priest at the Church, told Indonesian media that the suspected bomber tried to enter the church grounds on a motorbike, but was stopped by a security guard. Ten people have been wounded, some of them severely, he said.
Security camera footage showed a blast that blew flame, smoke and debris into the middle of the road. Police did not say who might be responsible for the apparent attack and there was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Gomar Gultom, head of the Indonesian Council of Churches, described the attack as a “cruel incident” as Christians were celebrating Palm Sunday, and urged people to remain calm and trust the authorities.