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Priest hurt in failed suicide bomb attack on Indonesian church

Archbishop asks for local Catholics to remain calm in what he thinks is an isolated incident
Priest hurt in failed suicide bomb attack on Indonesian church

Indonesian policemen examine St. Joseph Church in northern Sumatra, after a man tried to attack a priest on Aug. 28. The attacker also tried to set off an explosive device in the church in what is the latest incident in a string of attacks on religious minorities in the mainly Muslim country. (Photo by AFP)

Published: August 29, 2016 07:07 AM GMT

A priest is recovering from minor injuries inflicted upon him by a teenage axe-wielding would be suicide bomber who attacked him during Sunday Mass in Indonesia.

Capuchin Father Albertus S. Pandiangan, 60, was delivering a sermon when he was attacked in St. Joseph Church in the city of Medan, northern Sumatra.

Churchgoers restrained the attacker — identified as 18-year-old Ivan Armadi Hasugian — before he could inflict any serious injury upon the priest who suffered only a slight wound to his left arm.

Hasugian also attempted to detonate a bomb in his backpack, which failed to explode and just fizzled out.

Medan police chief Mardiaz Kusin Dwihananto  said investigations into the attacker's motives are underway.

As part of their investigation, local police said that they found a piece of paper among his belongings which had the symbol of the so-called Islamic State drawn upon it.

 

 

Father Albertus S. Pandiangan was slightly wounded on his left arm by the attack. (Photo from St. Joseph Mission Station Facebook)

 

Archbishop Anicetus Bongsu Sinaga of Medan said the local church would deal with the issue without prejudice.

"We will speak out for peace and a true brotherhood. We do not believe there will be any more attacks," Archbishop Sinaga said.

The archbishop asked all priests serving in his archdiocese to tell local Catholics to remain calm.

The perpetrator "is known as a [Muslim] who doesn't talk much and prays a lot," he said.

The chairman of the Indonesian Bishops' Conference, Archbishop Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo of Jakarta, denounced the attack, calling it inhumane.

"Terror and violence won't resolve anything; it only creates more suffering for people," said Archbishop Hardjoatmodjo.

Muliawan Margadana, who heads the Jakarta-based Association of Catholic Graduates and Intellectuals in Indonesia, said that the attack "is something we must not see as a straightforward issue."

Referring to the so called Islam State inspired attack in France on July 26 that killed an elderly Catholic priest during Mass, Margadana said the attack in Medan was "a message" intended to convey that "in a peaceful place, terror can be done without any hindrance."

Margadana urged the Indonesian government to reveal the motive of the attack.

The government also needs to take measures to protect religious people and their places of worship, he said.

Earlier this month, the Wahid Foundation — a research center on Islam — and the Indonesian Survey Institute, released a report that found that 8.1 percent or 12 million adult Muslims in Indonesia are either radicalized or at risk of being so.

Additional reporting by Siktus Harson in Jakarta

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