Relatives of Victims Meet to Mark One-Year Anniversary of Bali Bombings

BALI, Indonesia – Relatives of those killed in last year's triple suicide blasts on Indonesia's resort island of Bali gathered Sunday at a beach to mark the first anniversary of the attacks.

Crying and holding onto each other for support, the mostly Australian mourners laid wreathes at Jimbaran bay, where two seafood restaurants were attacked. Indonesian mourners read verses from Islam's holy book, the Quran.

"Before coming here I wanted revenge," said Heru Djatmiko, an Indonesian whose mother was killed in the blasts. "But now I realize that revenge would not help, or bring my mother back to life."

The Oct. 1 attacks killed 20 people: 15 Indonesians, four Australians and one Japanese.

Four Islamic militants were recently convicted in the blasts. A videotape by the alleged mastermind showed in court said the attacks were intended to avenge the deaths of Muslims in the U.S.-led wars on Afghanistan and Iraq.

Hundreds of police guarded the beach-side hotel where the ceremony took place.

The venue was kept secret until the last minute because of fears it could be targeted.

"We come together this morning to mourn, but many of us also will be remembering the life stories and aspirations of each person affected by this attack," Australian Ambassador Bill Farmer told the crowd of 120 people, including about 40 Australians.

The attacks were the second time militants in the world's most populous Muslim nation targeted Bali, a mostly Hindu island that has long attracted Western tourists.

Nightclub bombs on Bali in 2002 killed 202 people, most of them foreigners.

Attacks at the Australian Embassy and a luxury hotel in Jakarta killed more than 20 people in 2003 and 2004.

Militants from Jemaah Islamiyah, a loose group of Southeast Asian radicals that experts once said received funds from Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda, are blamed in the attacks.

Indonesia has arrested or convicted more than 150 militants in recent years, and last November killed Jemaah Islamiyah's chief bomb-making expert. But security experts warn the group is still capable of carrying out attacks.