REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has condemned suicide bomb attacks in the East Java provincial capital of Surabaya on Sunday morning. OIC Secretary General Yousef Al-Othaimeen strongly denounced the terrorist act targeting congregations at three churches in Indonesia's second largest city, the OIC said in a press statement carried on its official website.

Al-Othaimeen reaffirmed the OIC's principal position that violence and terrorism must not be linked to any religion, nationality, civilization or ethnic group.

He stressed that hard extremism and terrorism in any form and its manifestation, including violence against civilians and suicide attacks run counter to the holy principles of Islam and discredit the religious plurality of the Indonesian community.

He expressed OIC solidarity with the Indonesian people.

The OIC secretary general also offered condolences to the relatives of those killed in the incident and hoped the injured would recover soon.

Earlier, a number of friendly countries including South Korea and the United States also expressed condolences over the bomb attacks.

Suicide bomb attacks occurred at three churches in Surabaya on Sunday morning (May 13). The first bomb attack occurred at Santa Maria Church at 07.30 a.m., Indonesian Christian Church (GKI) at 07.35 a.m. and Pantekosta Church at 08.00 a.m.

The death toll in the suicide bomb attacks rose to 18 as of Monday, police said.

"In the first scene of bomb attacks at Santa Maria Tak Bercela Church in Ngagel, the number of people killed is seven, including two perpetrators," spokesman for the East Java Provincial Police Senior Commissioner Frans Barung Mangera said on Monday.

The number of people killed in the bomb attack at the Indonesian Christian Church (GKI) at Diponegoro Street is three, all of them perpetrators, he said.

"The three were a mother and her two children," he said.

Mangera said the number of people killed in the bomb attack at Pantekosta Church at Arjuno Street increased from three to eight, including one perpetrator.

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