The Religion of Peace’s way of wishing Christians a happy Easter.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Terror suspects arrested Thursday led police to a 150-kilogram (330-pound) bomb buried beneath a gas pipeline near a church just outside Indonesia’s capital, officials said.
Senior security minister Djoko Suyanto said he believed Islamic militants had been plotting an attack ahead of Easter celebrations, and the U.S. embassy urged Americans to be vigilant.
“The army and police are under high alert,” he told reporters, adding that troops would be deployed at churches and other strategic locations. “We want to guarantee safety.”
Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, has been battling extremists since 2002 when al-Qaida-linked militants attacked two nightclubs on Bali island, killing 202 people, many of them foreign tourists.
There have been several attacks since then targeting glitzy hotels, restaurants and an embassy, killing another 60. Hundreds of suspects have been arrested, convicted and thrown in jail.
In recent months, small bands of militants hoping to turn the secular nation of 237 million into an Islamic state have shifted their focus to local “enemies.”
They’ve gone after police, members of a minority Islamic sect deemed “deviant,” Christians and moderate Muslim leaders.
