Bomb attack hits Arusha church, killing one and injuring others

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (eTN) – A bomb attack to a holy Catholic Mass has killed one person and wounded more than 30 others in a suspected terror attack in Tanzania’s northern tourist city of Arusha Sunday morning.

The blast, believed to be a bomb attack, hit the new Catholic church in the Olasiti area before a mass attended by the Arusha Diocese Bishop Josaphat Lebulu accompanied by the Vatican Ambassador to Tanzania, Archbishop Francisco Montecillo Padilla. They were in attendance for the official opening of the church when the explosion occurred.

Police and security operatives have confirmed the ugly terror attack in this fast-growing tourist city in East Africa, adding that the “Vatican Ambassador was not injured” in the blast.

No group has so far claimed responsibility of the Sunday attack, the first horrific incident to be observed in this peaceful safari city in the history of Tanzania.

Arusha regional police commander Liberatus Sabas has confirmed that the attack to the Catholic church in the Olasiti location occurred during a Holy Congregation.

Security operatives could not confirm, however, whether the attack was targeted to kill the Vatican Ambassador Francisco Montecillo Padilla or other members of the Catholic congregation, but said the Pope’s representative is safe.

No tourists were hurt. Victims include local Catholic believers who went to attend the holy Sunday mass meant for prayers to bless and open the new church before the ugly attack.

Tanzania had received threats from Congolese fighters, M-23, fighting to overthrow the current government led by President Joseph Kabila. In their message to the Tanzanian government, M-23 rebels warned of massive attacks to the people of Tanzania if the government sent troops to disarm them (rebels) under the United Nations peacekeeping program.

But the Sunday attack was not immediately connected to the M-23 threats or other groups. Police said one man was arrested in connection with the incident, which caused a lot of panic in this tourist capital of Tanzania.

ABOUT ARUSHA CITY
Located exactly at the center of the African continent between Cape Town in South Africa and Cairo in Egypt, Arusha city is a sophisticated, lively city standing as the leading commercial center in northern Tanzania.

The city sits at an elevation of 1,500 meters above sea level, and is the fastest-growing municipality by its prominence as the gateway to East Africa’s most famous wildlife parks, international conferences, and business.

Arusha city is the hub of Tanzania’s tourism, harboring over 90 percent of tourist companies operating in northern Tanzania. The city has been marked to be an East African tourism exhibition center after years of successful annual Karibu Travel and Tourism Fairs (KTTF) which took place there in June every year.

Shopping bazaars, coffee houses (bars), curio shops, hotels, and museums, dominate the city’s prominence. These recreational and educational facilities are flocked with people of different cultures and nationalities.

The Goliondoi road area past the main post office and the Arusha Hotel provides shopping for tourists and other visitors. There are 400 shops there, organized mostly by craft guilds, so it is easy to compare quality and prices along the alleyways.

Jewelry made of gold, copper, diamonds, and the famous tanzanite are sold in shops along Goliondoi street while Makonde wood carvings are sold at open spaces off the street.

The Arusha International Conference center (AICC) is the biggest building in Arusha city. This huge triangular building gives Arusha city an international image. It accommodates the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) of which nationals from various nations work in this building with different professions.

Near the AICC complex is the Old German Boma, a site of early German administration in the Arusha region. It now accommodates the Natural History Museum, stocked with different species of wildlife, birds, and insects collected from various parts of Arusha region including the wildlife parks.

While visiting the museum, a visitor can enjoy a cup of coffee, and soft or hard drinks in its garden bar.

The Arusha Declaration Monument and the museum nearby would tell of the political and economic development of Arusha after independence from Tanganyika in 1961. Tanzania’s political blue print – the Arusha Declaration – was passed and signed in the house that accommodates the museum in February 1967, and this document added prominence in Arusha city.

Private taxi owners offer tours from the city center while tour operators offer longer safari tours as far as Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater, and Serengeti national parks.

The history of Arusha goes back in last decade of the 10th century when one German, Captain Johannes, who built a fort at the foot of Mount Meru to facilitate the German colonization of Tanzania, the then German East Africa.

From the little fort (now a natural museum), the town of Arusha grew, first as a trading post for the local people and today is now a famous center for various international activities which prompted the former US President Bill Clinton to christen it “the Geneva of Africa” during his brief visit there.

As the hub of Tanzania’s tourism, Arusha is the starting point for many wildlife and climbing safaris in the northern circuit. It is the headquarters of the Tanzania National Parks and a number of international wildlife conservation organizations.

Being the center of various international activities and gatherings, Arusha is the headquarters of the East African Community (EAC).

It is also the mineral city in northern Tanzania by its nearby Mererani Tanzanite mines that yield the precious Tanzanite gemstone, only available in Tanzania than any other part of the world.

Eclipsed by the majestic icecap of its neighbor, Mount Kilimanjaro, is Mount Meru with a height of 45,65 meters. It takes between 2 and 3 days to conquer its volcanic peak from where one can view Arusha city, Mount Kilimanjaro, the Maasai steppes, and Amboseli national park in Kenya.

At the foot of Mount Meru is Arusha National Park, the popular wildlife attraction site for Arusha residents and tourists wishing to make a quick visit to a nearby attractive site.

A day trip from Arusha city would bring a visitor to enjoy its beautiful scenery, spectacular view of Mount Meru, the 7 Momella crater lakes, and multiple colors of water birds, mainly flamingos and heroines.

This small national park includes the ash cone of Mt. Meru, the Ngurdoto Crater, and the lush highland forests that blanket its lower slopes. Game viewing around the Momela Lakes is at a laid-back and quiet pace, and while passing through the forest many visitors stop to search for troupes of rare colubus monkeys playing in the canopy.

The famous American movie star, John Wayne, shot the classic wildlife movie, Hatari, inside Arusha National Park over 50 years ago.

Lying between the 2 famous volcanic peaks of Mount Meru and Mount Kilimanjaro, Arusha National Park is the only wildlife park in northern Tanzania free from lions and other fierce predators except for a few scattered leopards and spotted hyenas.

It is the safest wildlife park for walking safaris and night trailing through its thick forests on the laps of Mount Meru.

The park’s diversity of habitats is comprised of shadowy montane forest inhabited by inquisitive blue monkeys and colorful turacos and trogons – the only place on the northern safari circuit where the acrobatic black-and-white colobus monkey is easily seen.