Santiago, Chile, Apr 25, 2008 / 12:21 pm
A group called the Insurrectionalist Federation has claimed responsibility for an attack on the University of Los Andes in Santiago, Chile in which a homemade explosive device was detonated in one of the bathrooms.
The group in question sent a statement to a local radio station claiming responsibility for the attack as a rejection of the Constitutional Court’s ruling to prohibit distribution of the morning-after pill at public health facilities. One of the most reknown professors at the university is a member of the High Court.
The attack occurred at 8:10pm Wednesday, when a large explosion was felt in the women’s bathroom located on the second floor of the science building.
The explosion set off the fire alarm in the building, and local police officers evacuated students, professors and administration officials who were in the building.
No one was wounded in the attack but structural damage was caused.
Although most of the Chilean media downplayed the incident, the size of the explosion was significant.
“They said it was a ‘noise bomb’ but in reality the bathroom was destroyed and if someone had been in there he would have died or been injured,” university officials told CNA.