Department denies Irish person missing in Bali

Reports that an Irish person is among those missing in Bali following three suicide bomb attacks have been dismissed as "misreporting…

Reports that an Irish person is among those missing in Bali following three suicide bomb attacks have been dismissed as "misreporting" by the Department of Foreign Affairs.

More than 20 people were killed in three attacks on Saturday night. Indonesian authorities today released details of those still missing after the attacks.

Twelve of the missing were said to be from Indonesia; two each from the United States, Denmark, Japan, and Austria; as well as one each from Singapore, Belgium, the United Kingdom and Ireland. One of the missing was unidentified.

But a spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs told ireland.comthat the report of a missing Irish person was most likely "a case of misreporting". She said Irish officials were liaising with authorities in Bali.

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She said: "It appears to be an error in recording. The Department does not have serious concerns for Irish people in the area."

The Irish honorary consul in Jakarka , Dr Niall Nelson said that the three Irish people registered as resident in Bali had all been contacted and none had been affected by the bombings. He said he had received no information from the Indonesian authorities indicating that an Irish person was missing after the bombings.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern condemned the "barbaric" attack on Saturday. He said he had instructed an official from the Irish embassy in Singapore to travel to Bali to provide any consular assistance that may be required.

The Department again advised against non-essential travel to any part of Indonesia, including Bali. Irish citizens in Indonesia are urged to exercise extreme caution, particularly in public places frequented by westerners such as hotels, restaurants and nightclubs.

An emergency phone line was set up for those with relatives in the area who may be concerned. It is (01) 4082308 and 4082833.

Patrick  Logue

Patrick Logue

Patrick Logue is Digital Editor of The Irish Times