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       Families Head to Guantánamo Bay Seeking Justice in Bali Bombing Case

       Relatives of victims of the 2002 attack are expected to describe their loss to a U.S. military jury sentencing two Malaysian prisoners.

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       Frank Heffernan and his wife, Bonnie Hall, at their home in Melbourne, Fla. “Not a day goes by that I don’t think of her,” Mr. Heffernan said of his daughter Megan, who was killed in the 2002 terrorist attack on the Indonesian island of Bali. Credit...Zack Wittman for The New York Times

       By Carol Rosenberg

       Carol Rosenberg reported this story from the Heffernan home in Melbourne, Fla., then traveled to Guantánamo Bay for the legal proceedings.

       Jan. 19, 2024, 9:50 a.m. ET

       Frank Heffernan thought his daughter Megan was in South Korea where she was working as an English teacher when he heard the news of a devastating terrorist attack on the Indonesian island of Bali on Oct. 12, 2002.

       Then the State Department called.

       Megan Heffernan, 28, who was born and raised in Alaska and had a passion for travel, was among the 202 people who were killed in the coordinated bombings carried out by an affiliate of Al Qaeda at a pub and nearby club in Bali. She had gone there with friends on a vacation.

       “Not a day goes by that I don’t think of her,” said Mr. Heffernan, mopping his eyes with a tissue at his home in Florida.

       In the random, cruel fashion of terrorism, the bombing killed tourists and workers from 22 nations who happened to be in a commercial district, including 38 Indonesians. Among the dead were Australian and British citizens who were there for a rugby match, Americans passionate about surfing — and Megan and two Korean friends, who were out sightseeing when the bombs exploded.

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       Carol Rosenberg reports on the wartime prison and court at Guantánamo Bay. She has been covering the topic since the first detainees were brought to the U.S. base in 2002. More about Carol Rosenberg

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