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/ 21 December 2004

Drug users complain of fake Ecstasy

Indonesia’s efforts to stamp out counterfeiting have taken an unusual turn with police closing down two factories manufacturing fake Ecstasy pills after complaints from users of the party drug. Detectives swung into action on the resort island of Bali after hearing how people consuming the bogus tablets failed to experience the desired effect.

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/ 19 December 2004

Meteor blamed for mystery blast in Indonesia

A large explosion was heard over Jakarta on Sunday after a suspected meteor was seen streaking across the sky over the Indonesian capital. The blast, which came as the country is on heightened alert after warnings of an imminent extremist attack, caused brief alarm but astronomers said it was likely a large meteor exploding as it fell to Earth.

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/ 15 November 2004

Indonesian quake toll reaches 23

An elderly woman became on Monday the latest victim of a powerful earthquake and aftershocks in eastern Indonesia, as a relief official appealed for tents to house thousands left homeless.The latest death brings to 23 the number who have died since Friday when the quake measuring six on the Richter scale hit Alor island near East Timor.

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/ 12 November 2004

Powerful quake hits Indonesia

At least 16 people were killed and 100 injured, many seriously, on Friday after a succession of earthquakes measuring at least six on the Richter scale rocked an island in eastern Indonesia, police said. The quake, which was felt in the nearby country of East Timor, left hospitals struggling to cope with the wounded.

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/ 15 September 2004

One killed in Bali earthquake

A strong earthquake rocked Indonesia’s famous tourist island of Bali on Wednesday, killing one person and injuring at least two others, officials said. ”People rushed out of their homes, they panicked. The quake was very strong and lasted a long time,” said Budi Sunarso, of Bali’s geophysics agency.

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/ 30 August 2004

Acronyms run amok in Indonesia

Uncluttered by tenses, prepositions and grammatical quirks, Indonesia’s national tongue was once a gift to travellers who quickly grasped the basics. Now a bizarre passion for acronyms is threatening to engulf the language, leaving visitors and even locals lost in translation as more phrases are mangled into this ugly alphabet soup.

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/ 17 February 2004

Another quake in Indonesia

An earthquake that struck Indonesia’s Sumatra island killed five people, damaged 60 homes and prompted many panicked residents to spend the night outdoors, officials said on Tuesday. Earlier this month, an earthquake in West Papua province with an estimated magnitude of 6,8 killed three dozen people.

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/ 7 February 2004

More tremors after killer quake

A major aftershock rattled the northwestern Papua town of Nabire on Saturday, one day after a powerful quake killed 24 people in the same town. The National Earthquake Centre at the meteorology and geophysics bureau said the aftershock measured 6,2 on the Richter scale.

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/ 6 February 2004

Killer quake jolts Indonesia

A series of powerful earthquakes measuring up to magnitude 6,9 struck Indonesia’s remote Papua province Friday, killing 26 people, injuring as many as 600 and destroying hundreds of houses, authorities said. The quakes hit hardest in the town of Nabire, damaging the local airport, a bridge, roads and buildings.

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/ 5 February 2004

Floods, landslides hit Indonesia

Heavy storms hit parts of Indonesia’s Java and Bali islands, killing at least four people and severely damaging hundreds of houses, news report said on Thursday. The severe storms triggered landslides when rivers in the crowded East and Central Java provinces overflowed their banks.

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/ 9 October 2003

Girls burn to death in Indonesian bus crash

At least 54 people were killed when a three-vehicle collision in Indonesia exploded into flames, trapping the victims, most of them schoolgirls, inside their burning bus. Forty-nine girls, aged between 17 and 18, died in the inferno after the bus was crushed between two vehicles on Wednesday evening on a dark and busy highway.

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/ 18 September 2003

Remorseful Bali bomber gets life

A remorseful Islamic teacher has been jailed for life by an Indonesian court after being found guilty of playing a key role in last October’s Bali bombings that left more than 200 people dead. Ali Imron admitted helping plot the attacks, which police blamed on the al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah terror network.