The Indonesian anti-terror unit has arrested seven suspects allegedly involved in the Bali and Jakarta bombings after recent crackdowns on militant strongholds in Central and East Java, the national police chief Sutanto said Thursday.

"We have arrested seven suspected terrorists in Central Java and East Java," Sutanto told reporters at the State Palace here.

The suspects were wanted in connections with a series of bombings in Jakarta and the resort island of Bali, he said.

Police also seized a cache of arms including three M-16 assault rifles, six pistols, 200 detonators, 62 kg of chemical used in bomb making and thousands of ammunition, he said.

"We are investigating what all those stuffs were intended for. We thank God we could prevent them from doing any harm to the people."

Bali and Jakarta have become the main targets for militants since 2002, with each hit by two major bombings in different years.

Two nightclubs on the resort island were blown away by a car bomb in 2002, leaving 202 people dead, followed by triple suicide bombings in 2005 that claimed 19 lives.

Car bombings also struck the Marriott Hotel and the Australian Embassy in Jakarta in 2003 and 2004, respectively, with casualties at more than 20 altogether.

Source: Xinhua