On 12 October 2002, three terrorist attacks took place in the tourist district of Kuta on the Indonesian island of Bali. 2 suicide bombings occurred in two popular nightspots in Kuta Beach, the Sari Club and Paddy's Pub, killing a total of 202 people including 151 Western tourists from Australia and Europe as well as 38 local Indonesian residents living or working in businesses or homes around the nightclubs. The blasts injured a further 209 people. It is the deadliest terrorist attack in Indonesia's history.
On 9 November 2005, former Malaysian university lecturer Azahari Husin, a member of Jemaah Islamiyyah and one of the masterminds behind the construction of the bomb, was killed in a police raid in Batu, East Java. Azahari was also believed to be the perpetrator behind several terrorist attacks in Indonesia during the early 2000s. On 9 November 2008, Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, Imam Samudra, and Mukhlas were executed by firing squad at the Nusakambangan prison. On 9 March 2010, Dulmatin, nicknamed "The Genius"—believed to have set off one of the Bali bombs with a mobile phone—was killed in a shootout with Indonesian police in Pamulang, South Tangerang.
Attack
At around 11:05 p.m., the explosive-laden van was driven by Ali Imron 12.5 kilometers from an isolated safehouse to Kuta Beach, then handed over to Jimi who would detonate the bomb. The van drove onto Legian Street and parked beside the Sari Club. The parking position of the van created a traffic jam behind it. Ali Imron and Idris exited the van and hopped onto a Yamaha FZ1R motorcycle. They drove to the U.S. Consulate building in the suburb of Renon in Denpasar where they planted the bomb and detonated it using a remote detonator. The explosion injured one passerby and caused minor property damage. Meanwhile, terrorist Iqbal walked into the Paddy's Pub nightclub (sometimes called Paddy's Irish Bar or Paddy's Bar) wearing an explosive-laden vest.https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/law-order/true-crime-scene/insight-editor-keith-moor-reconstructs-the-story-behind-the-2002-bali-bombing/news-story/d654ff052787870afebe15f822a8d54c He headed to the packed dance floor which had approximately 150 people standing feet from the DJ nearby. He then detonated the vest bomb, killing himself and numerous party-goers. Twenty seconds later, suicide bomber Arnasan detonated the explosives-laden van, killing himself and many tourists and partygoers who had exited the Sari Club to investigate the blast at Paddy's Pub.
The bombing occurred during one of the year's busiest tourist periods in Kuta Beach, driven in part by many Australian sporting teams making their annual end-of-season holiday.
Damage to the densely populated residential and commercial district was immense, destroying neighbouring buildings and shattering windows several blocks away. The car bomb explosion left a crater.Australian Department of Defence. "Aspects of forensic responses to the Bali bombings "
The local Sanglah Hospital was ill-equipped to deal with the scale of the disaster and was overwhelmed with the number of injured, particularly burn victims. So many people were injured by the explosion that some of them had to be placed in hotel pools near the explosion site to ease the pain of their burns. Many had to be flown to Darwin () and Perth (), for burn treatment.
Bombers The individuals involved in the attack were:
Amrozi bin Nurhasyim: purchased the Mitsubishi van Ali Gufron (alias Mukhlas): Amrozi's elder brother who had ordered an attack on Bali's nightclubs, arrested 3 December 2002, executed by firing squad in November 2008 Ali Imron (alias Alik): sentenced to life imprisonment Johni Hendrawan (alias Idris): planned and executed the attack on the nightclubs which included scouting the location, teaching the other terrorists how to detonate the bombs, and arranging meetings regarding assembly of the bomb Abdul Aziz (alias Imam Samudra): executed by firing squad in November 2008 Dulmatin: helped build both the car and vest bombs, reported to have allegedly detonated the bomb outside the U.S. Consulate via a remote detonating device Suranto Abdul al-Ghani: age 34, helped prepare the chemical explosive component of the bombs, escaped with terrorists Abdul and Dedy Mizwar shortly after the explosions, but was later captured and sentenced to life imprisonment Umar Patek: helped design and prepare the van bomb, sentenced to 20 years imprisonment, released on parole in 2022, started a coffee chain "Rami" in 2025 Feri (alias Iqbal, aged 24): suicide bomber who detonated the explosive-laden vest inside Paddy's Pub Arnasan (alias Acong, Jimi, or "Iqbal Two", aged 23): suicide bomber who detonated the van bomb outside the Sari Club Azahari Usin: mastermind behind the creation of the bomb, killed in a police raid in November 2005.
Total fatalities 202 Fatalities by nationality (Source: SBS News Australia) Nationality Deaths 88 38 23 7 6 5 4 4 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 Unknown 3 Fatalities by age (Source: Sydney Morning Herald) Age Deaths Under 21 20 21–30 77 31–40 73 Over 40 28 Unknown 4
Victims The final death toll was 202, mainly Western tourists and holiday-makers (including 88 Australian tourists) who were in or near Paddy's Pub or the Sari Club, but also including many Balinese Indonesians working or living nearby as well as passersby on the street and in vehicles behind the van. The blast also killed several tourists who had fled the explosion at Paddy's Pub and had run out into the street, these being the majority of the fatalities. Hundreds more people suffered horrific burns and other injuries. On 14 October, the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 1438 condemning the attack as a threat to international peace and security.
Awards There were many acts of individual heroism in the bombings' aftermath. Several of these received official recognition under Australia's honours and awards system, particularly in the Special Honours List for 2003.
Timothy Britten, a Senior Constable with the Western Australia Police Force, and Richard Joyes were both awarded the Cross of Valour, Australia's highest civilian honour, for entering the burning remains of the Sari Club to free a badly injured woman from the wreckage; after rescuing her on the third attempt, both men then searched for other potential survivors until the increasing intensity of the flames and of secondary explosions made this impossible. Both men were aware of the possibility of being injured or even killed (Britten specifically believed that yet another bomb might detonate at any moment in order to disrupt rescue efforts and kill emergency workers) and indeed sustained several injuries during their efforts to rescue the woman and find other survivors.
Natalie Goold initially escaped from Paddy's Bar after the bombings but then went back into the burning building, sustaining burns to her right arm and hand, to rescue her friend Nicole McLean, who had been heavily injured by the blasts. After asking two men for their shirts to use as tourniquets for McLean's wounds, Goold secured McLean's transportation to a local hospital and stayed with her during their medical evacuation to Australia.GOOLD, Natalie Joy, SC, 17 October 2003. For unknown reasons, there is no actual citation. itsanhonour.gov.au. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
Robert Meredith and his group of friends were caught up in the bombing of the Sari Club; he was thrown onto his back and badly winded. Amid intense heat and flames, Meredith and his friends lifted about ten survivors over a wall to escape. The wall gave way under the climbers' weight, injuring Meredith's feet and stripping away his thong sandals, which had provided scant protection. He then reached a staircase and assisted more survivors to safety. Meredith would ultimately be left with several burns and cuts to his feet.MEREDITH, Robert Alan, SC, 17 October 2003. For unknown reasons, there is no actual citation. itsanhonour.gov.au. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
Lauren Munro was also caught up in the Sari bombing, being rendered unconscious; when he came to, he pulled free an injured woman who had been trapped under roof beams, and carried her out of the building and over a wall of rubble. Munro helped several other people get over the same wall before re-entering the Sari Club and spending the next two hours carrying out many more injured people and helping to fight the fire.MUNRO, Lauren John, SC, 17 October 2003. For unknown reasons, there is no actual citation. itsanhonour.gov.au. Retrieved 2 October 2023. Ben Clohessy was also rendered unconscious by the blast that destroyed the Sari Club and also rescued or helped to rescue other survivors after regaining consciousness.CLOHESSY, Ben Michael, SC, 17 October 2003. For unknown reasons, there is no actual citation. itsanhonour.gov.au. Retrieved 2 October 2023. Goold, Meredith, Munro, and Clohessy were all awarded the Star of Courage (SC) on 17 October 2003 for their respective actions.
Awards of the Commendation for Brave Conduct were made to, among other people, Hanabeth Luke. LUKE, Hanabeth, Commendation for Brave Conduct, 17 October 2003. For unknown reasons, there is no actual citation. itsanhonour.gov.au. Retrieved 2 October 2023. Luke was in the Sari Club with her partner Marc Gajado at the time of the second bombing, with the explosion throwing her to the ground. After managing to escape the now-burning building by climbing through its collapsed roof using severed electrical wire, Luke began a search for Gajado, during which she came across a badly injured Tom Singer. Singer was lying close to a burning car and Luke believed that he would be engulfed in flames if he remained there.
When Singer confirmed that he could not stand up independently, Luke helped him to his feet and supported him in walking away. Luke attempted to re-enter the Sari Club to continue searching for Gajado, but a friend convinced her the area was too hazardous; Gajado was later found to have died instantly. She returned to Singer and assisted others in placing him in a car for transport to the hospital. Singer died in hospital a month later. Separately from her Commendation for Brave Conduct award, a photograph of Luke helping Singer was published in news media around the world in the days after the bombings.