[Nasional-e] MUI fact finding team says not micro-nuclear

[Ambon]

http://www.thejakartapost.com/detaillatestnews.asp?fileid=20021127211142&ire
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Bali bombs not micro-nuclear explosives, MUI fact finding team says

JAKARTA (JP): The fact-finding team of the Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI),
led by former chief of the State Intelligence Agency (Bakin) Lt. Gen. (ret)
ZA Maulani, said on Wednesday that it was hard to believe that Oct. 12 bomb
planted in a vehicle outside the Sari Club in Bali was a micro-nuclear
explosive, Antara reported.

Dr. Didi Setiadi, a technical advisor of MUI's fact-finding team, said the
MUI's doubts were based on, among other things, the fact that the thermal
effect was lower than that of a micro-nuclear devise, the PVC cables located
around the bomb site had not been burned and that the trees within a radius
of 20 meters of the blast site remained green or were unaffected by the
explosion.

The team also concluded that the bomb was a high explosive equivalent to 300
kilograms of TNT. "Such characteristics of a highly sophisticated bomb
cannot be expected from that which has been traditionally manufactured by
laymen," Didi said.

The bomb may have been made from RDX, C-4, HMX or PETN explosives, the
expert said, while the bomb that exploded inside Paddy's bar was of a
relatively lower intensity but had a higher thermal effect.

"The bomb may have been a conventional one of which a high thermal effect
was produced by chlorate," Didi said.

The MUI team also concluded that the bombing must have been planned by
professionals who were very knowledgeable about the explosive effects and of
the public's response to such a tragedy. "The Bali bomb blast was
well-planned and thoroughly calculated with the main target of claiming as
many victims as possible," he said.

Based on those facts, the MUI fact-finding team advised the police not to
focus their investigation merely on the origins of a traditionally
manufactured bomb, but also on the background of the high explosives being
used in the Oct. 12 Bali bomb blast