Radical Islamists torched the new dorms of a Christian school in a bold attack in the outskirts of Jakarta.
(CSW)
One of the largest Christian schools in Indonesia was attacked by Islamic militants this weekend for the second time in one week:
One of the largest evangelical theology schools in Indonesia was harassed for the second time this month by a mob of more than 200 Islamic militants past weekend.
Arastamar Evangelical School of Theology (SETIA), located in east Jakarta, had just suffered from an attack on Mar. 8 when a mob of some 200 militants besieged the school for three hours starting at 9:30 a.m. (local time) on Saturday demanding the closure of the school, reported Christian Solidarity Worldwide.
The school, which claims some 1,500 students, said it has a good relationship with local Muslims and that the mob was from another area.
The incident caught the attention of local police and some 400 officers were reportedly dispatched to prevent the mob from harming the school.
“This is now a common occurrence in Indonesia,” said SETIA’s vice principal, Juwanto, according to CSW. “But today the government showed that it cares about the situation.”
In the earlier attack on Mar. 8 – only three days before the school was besieged – militants burned down new dormitories and outlying buildings, accusing the school of being illegal.
The school says it is legal and has the official permits for all its buildings as well as its new dormitory.
“This incident (school attack) is deeply concerning as it took place in the capital rather than one of the regions which has experienced problems before,” commented Mervyn Thomas, CSW’s chief executive.
ADN Kronos has more on the torchings.
Meanwhile… In Australia extremist students from Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Egypt just took over a mosque.
