Several attackers set off a series of explosions that targeted downtown Jakarta on Thursday and exchanged gunfire with Indonesian authorities, leaving at least seven people, including five assailants, dead.
Updated: The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack on its website.
The blasts focused on the Sarinah shopping center in the Indonesian capital with at least one explosion at a Starbucks cafe. Initial images of the aftermath showed bodies in the streets, as police arrived at the cafe, engaging the suspects in a shootout. More explosions soon followed.
Hours after the first blast, police said five suspects and two civilians were killed and 10 more people were injured. A Dutch man was among the dead, Indonesia’s security minister Luhut Panjaitan said. Indonesian President Joko Widodo appeared on national TV to say the situation was “under control” and to call for calm.
“This act is clearly aimed at disturbing public order and spreading terror among people,” he said. “The state, the nation and the people should not be afraid of, and lose to, such terror acts.”
It’s unclear whether the attackers detonated bombs or grenades.
"How well-organized is ISIS in Southeast Asia?" PBS NewsHour 1/14/2016
Excerpt
SUMMARY: Multiple gunmen and suicide bombers struck the center of Jakarta, targeting a police booth as well as a nearby Starbucks. Two civilians were killed and five attackers died. The Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility. Chief foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Warner reports, and Judy Woodruff explores ISIS's expansion into Southeast Asia with Joby Warrick of The Washington Post.
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