SURABAYA, Indonesia — Thousands of followers of Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid rioted Tuesday, attacking churches and buildings belonging to political rivals on the eve of a Parliament meeting expected to set an impeachment bid in motion.
The effort to oust Wahid gathered more momentum when the party of popular Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri confirmed it would back a call for impeachment and suggested she is prepared to replace him.
Security forces fired rubber bullets at protesters in Wahid's home province of East Java, where many revere the Indonesian president as an Islamic holy man. An opposition party official's home was attacked on Sumatra island.
In Jakarta, 2,000 pro-Wahid protesters, many armed with sticks and knives, rallied in front of the state palace and threatened to attack the national legislature if it did not drop its impeachment drive.
Wahid warned on Monday that his removal from office could trigger national disintegration. On Tuesday he called for an end to the mayhem that was launched in his name.
"The president regrets and condemns the violence," a statement from his office said. "He sees the violence as an attempt to pit groups in society against one another."
Megawati's stand appeared to dash Wahid's hopes that she might accept a power-sharing deal to let him remain in office.
If the assembly ousts Wahid — which could happen by August — Megawati is almost certain to replace him.
Lawmakers said they will push ahead with the ouster campaign despite the violence and an announcement Monday by the attorney general that prosecutors had cleared Wahid of any wrongdoing.
Parliament speaker Akbar Tandjung said the impeachment effort was motivated by "the president's performance, attitude and policies."
In East Java, security forces fired warning shots when hundreds of people protested outside a police station after four men were arrested for setting fire to a church and throwing stones at another in the town of Pasuruan on Tuesday.
About a dozen demonstrators were hurt, hospital officials said.
On Monday, mobs burned a mosque belonging to an Islamic group that is a rival of Wahid's own religious organization and two offices of Megawati's party.
In Indonesia's second largest city, Surabaya, 440 miles east of Jakarta, about 1,000 Wahid supporters burned tires and blocked roads, demanding lawmakers drop their plan to impeach him.
Hundreds of police and soldiers fired warning shots to disperse crowds that tried to invade the East Java regional legislature, and dozens of armored vehicles drove through Surabaya's streets.
Islam and mysticism blur among Wahid's followers in East Java, who claim God chose him to lead the nation. One paramilitary group has been training followers, and there have been calls for a holy war in Wahid's defense — something he has condemned.
Authorities said gasoline bombs were thrown at the home of an opposition party official in Bandar Lumpung, on the southern tip of Sumatra island about 125 miles northwest of Jakarta.
In the capital, armored vehicles were deployed around Parliament and the nearby Jakarta Convention Center, where leaders of the G-15 group of developing nations were to meet Wednesday.