{"id":12255,"date":"2026-06-01T13:31:24","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T13:31:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=12255"},"modified":"2026-06-01T13:31:24","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T13:31:24","slug":"suspected-world-war-ii-bomb-explodes-in-indonesia-killing-5-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=12255","title":{"rendered":"Suspected World War II bomb explodes in Indonesia, killing 5 people"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A suspected shell left over from World War II exploded under a stilt house in an Indonesian fishing village, killing five people and wounding nearly 20, police said Monday.<\/p>\n

The blast in Indonesia’s restive eastern Papua region startled locals with a thunderous boom on Sunday afternoon, emitting a ball of flames followed by a thick smoke column, according to footage broadcast on Kompas TV.<\/p>\n

Nine homes were destroyed.<\/p>\n

“The source of the explosion is strongly suspected to have been a bomb or mortar left over from World War II,” Papua police spokesman Cahyo Sukarnito told AFP.<\/p>\n

Three people are still recorded as missing, but Cahyo said several body parts have yet to be identified.<\/p>\n

At least 19 people were treated for minor injuries, he added.<\/p>\n

“We will provide further updates once the search for victims and the investigation have been completed,” said Cahyo.<\/p>\n

Last year, nine civilians were among 13 people killed in West Java province when an explosion occurred as Indonesian troops attempted to dispose of rejected munitions by detonating them in a pit.<\/p>\n

Indonesia was a major battle zone during World War II when Japanese forces occupied what was then the Dutch East Indies, and Allied forces fought to retake control.<\/p>\n

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\"The<\/span>

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The Amphibious Vehicle, Tracked (LVT) American Tank from World War II is seen inside a forest in Esmambo village of Tambrauw regency, Indonesia on March 22, 2023.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Garry Lotulung\/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images<\/p>\n

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Bombs left over from the war have been found around the globe in recent years, and some of them have exploded.<\/p>\n

In March, an unexploded World War II bomb was successfully defused<\/span> in the German city of Dresden after thousands of residents were evacuated.<\/p>\n

Last October, two men were hospitalized in Poland after a World War II artillery shell that one of them had found in a forest and brought back home exploded<\/span>. <\/p>\n

In March 2025, a World War II bomb\u00a0was found<\/span>\u00a0near the tracks of Paris’ Gare du Nord station. The month before that, more than 170 bombs were\u00a0found<\/span>\u00a0near a children’s playground in northern England.<\/p>\n

In 2024, an unexploded U.S. bomb from World War II<\/span> that had been buried at a Japanese airport exploded, causing a large crater in a taxiway and the cancellation of more than 80 flights.<\/p>\n

In 2023, a World War II bomb that was found in England\u00a0exploded<\/span>\u00a0in what authorities called an “unplanned” detonation.<\/p>\n

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