MacDonald House bombing

About

The MacDonald House bombing was a terrorist attack that occurred in Singapore on 10 March 1965 at 15:07 local time. A bomb that was planted in MacDonald House at Orchard Road exploded, instantly killing two and injuring 33 others. Part of the building was also damaged by the bomb. A third victim of the bombing died after being in a coma for two days. As it was planted by Indonesian marines Harun bin Said and Osman bin Haji Muhammad Ali, the bombing affected bilateral relationships between Indonesia and Singapore.

The nitroglycerin bomb was planted as part of the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation (Konfrontasi), a conflict between Indonesia and Malaysia over Indonesia's opposition to the creation of Malaysia. At the time, Singapore was still an autonomous state within Malaysia. The men were originally instructed to bomb a power station but went to MacDonald House instead. At the time, the building was used by the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank (HSBC), the Australian High Commission and the Japanese Consulate. Both marines subsequently attempted to flee Singapore but were apprehended by the Police Coast Guard. They were charged with the murders of three victims, although the bombing itself was not mentioned in the charges. They were put on trial in the High Court and after a 13-day trial, were found guilty of charges of murder and sentenced to death. Despite multiple appeals, including a clemency plea from Indonesian president Suharto, they were hanged on 17 October 1968, causing about 300 students to raid the Singapore Embassy in Jakarta.