AMERICA/CHILE - Rudimental bomb explodes near a parish in the capital

Santiago (Agenzia Fides) – “We live in a democratic society, where every individual is free to express his or her own ideas, violence cannot be a valid path for Chileans”: says a statement issued by the archdiocese of Santiago condemning a bomb explosion not far from a parish church in the Chilean capital. Fortunately no one was hurt and no damage was done, says an archdiocese report to Fides. The bomb had been placed by unidentified persons close to the parish of San Pedro de Las Condes, a well to do district in the capital. It exploded in the morning of Saturday 21 February.
The Catholic Church in Chile, "is deeply saddened and condemns strongly this sort of action which intimidates and threatens not only the committed Catholics in this community but also people passing by " said auxiliary Bishop of Santiago Luis Fernando Ramos Pérez.
According to procurator Raul Guzman, charged with the investigation, the attack revealed criminal “audacity”, since the explosion happened in broad daylight and in a very busy part of the city. A report sent to Fides by a local source, Radio Bio Bio, says that today, 23 February, the government intends to present a proposal to include this sort of crime under the heading " Antiterrorism Law". This is by no means an isolated case, recently similar episodes have been reported in various parts of Santiago: the most serious, in 2014 at a metro station, left several persons injured . (CE) (Agenzia Fides, 23/02/2015)