A double bombing at a market in Tentena, Indonesia killed 22 people amid ongoing Muslim-Christian sectarian violence in the Poso region.
Key Facts
- Deaths
- 22
- Wounded
- At least 40
- Explosive devices used
- 2 IEDs, detonated 15 minutes apart
- Convictions
- Several militants sentenced in 2007 and 2010
- Anniversary
- 5th anniversary of Sintuwu Lemba massacre (191 killed)
- Prior regional conflict toll
- At least 577 killed, 86,000 displaced
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The bombing occurred against a backdrop of prolonged sectarian conflict between Muslim and Christian communities in the Poso region of Central Sulawesi, which had already killed at least 577 people and displaced 86,000 before a government truce in December 2001. Perpetrators cited revenge for prior atrocities against Muslims, and the attack was timed to coincide with the fifth anniversary of a massacre of at least 191 Muslims in Sintuwu Lemba village.
On 28 May 2005, two improvised explosive devices were detonated roughly 15 minutes apart at a market in the center of Tentena, Central Sulawesi, during the morning when the market was busy. The blasts killed 22 people, including a Christian clergyman and a 3-year-old boy, and wounded at least 40 others.
Several Islamic militants were charged and convicted for their roles in organizing the Tentena bombing and other sectarian attacks in the Poso region. Sentences were handed down in 2007 and 2010. The attack drew renewed attention to unresolved tensions in Central Sulawesi despite the 2001 peace truce and underscored the cycle of retaliatory violence between communities in the region.