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The bomb explosion at the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank building known as MacDonald House in Orchard Road, was the worst incident of terrorism during the Confrontation.

Indonesia had declared a state of armed confrontation against Singapore, in protest of the merger.

On September 18 1963, Tengku Abdul Rahman severed diplomatic ties with Indonesia and the Philippines.

"In view of the fact that the Indonesia Government has broken off ties with Malaysia without any apparent reason, we have no choice but to do likewise and to recall our Ambassador and the Embassy staff, and at the same time to close down our consulate in Medan."

During the confrontation , Indonesian troops invaded Sabah, Sarawak and Johor. There were sabotage incidents in Singapore. As bomb explosions became more frequent, Singaporeans underwent bomb drills and were warned not to handle any suspicious-looking parcels.

An Indonesian escorted by a Federal Reserve Unit man after being arrested at West Coast Road

A state of emergency was declared in Malaysia on September 4 1964 after 30 Indonesia commandos airdropped into the Labis area. The next day, a curfew was imposed in Singapore, in response to the Indonesian-inspired clashes where eight persons were killed.

Click on image to read about the interview with General Suharto

It was not until 1966, that Lieutenant-General Suharto made moves to end the confrontation. In an exclusive interview with the Straits Times in May, Suharto "expressed hope that the dispute between Indonesia and Malaysia should be settled "the sooner the better".

In August 1966, the Indonesia parliament approved the end of the Confrontation. Suharto became the president of Indonesia.