Indonesia LIVE: At least six dead as seven blasts rock Jakarta; gunfight underway

A series of explosions in Jakarta, Indonesia have left at least six people dead and several injured. (Christian Hubel via AP)

Six blasts rocked Jakarta on Thursday morning. The explosions were close to Sarinah mall, in the national capital.

At least seven blasts were heard in Indonesia’s capital Jakarata late Thursday morning leaving six, including three police officials, dead.

The first blast reportedly took place at a Star Bucks cafe in Jalan Thamrin across Sarinah Plaza. The second blast took place outside a a police kiosk located near the Sarinah mall. There is no confirmation as yet on whether the third blast that took place in that locality was a grenade or a suicide bomber. No organisation has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Indonesian network TVOne reports that besides the blasts near Sarinah mall, three other blasts took place at Cikni, Silpi and Kuningan neighborhoods, near the Turkish and Pakistani embassies.

“We have previously received a threat from Islamic State that Indonesia will be the spotlight,” police spokesman Anton Charliyan told reporters. But he said police did not know who was responsible.

He said three policemen and three civilians had been killed.

LIVE UPDATES:

11. 35 am: Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo termed the Jakarta blasts as an ‘acts of terror’. “These are acts of terror. We cannot be afraid and we cannot be defeated.”

11.25 am: The United States has issued an advisory to all its citizens in Indonesia: “This emergency message is being issued to advise all US citizens to avoid the area around Sari Pan Pacific Hotel and Sarinah Plaza on Jalan Sudirman Thamrin, in downtown Jakarta.  Preliminary reports indicate an explosion and gunfire has occurred in the general vicinity and situation continues to unfold.”

11.15 am: Indonesian news outlet Detik reports that a stand-off is currently underway at the Cakrawala building in central Jakarta. The report states that the blast perpetrators, who are armed, are holed up on the fourth floor.

Among the first victims was a police official. It was unclear if he died due to the explosion or the gun-battle that ensued.

The Sydney Morning Herald’s Indonesia correspondent Jewel Topsfield quotes Indonesia’s national police spokesman Anton Charliyan as saying: “Up to six suspected terrorists involved. Four people have been killed including one policeman.”

According to Channel News Asia, the attackers threw grenades at the police kiosk and then began firing indiscriminately. The news channel also reports that the police had prior information about an attack.

Police officials have been asking those occupying buildings in the vicinity to stay away from windows, an eye-witness tweeted.

The location is among the busiest streets of Jakarata with commercial establishments in the locality as well as the United Nations office.

Over the last week, police officials have made several arrests, Al Jazeera reports.

More details are awaited.

Indonesia has the world’s largest Muslim population, the vast majority of whom practise a moderate form of the religion.

The country saw a spate of militant attacks in the 2000s, the deadliest of which was a nightclub bombing on the holiday island of Bali that killed 202 people, most of them tourists.

Police have been largely successful in destroying domestic militant cells since then, but officials have more recently been worrying about a resurgence inspired by groups such as Islamic State and Indonesians who return after fighting with the group.

The last major militant attacks in Jakarta were in July 2009, with bombs at the JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton hotels.

With inputs from Reuters

(Source : ndianexpress.com)

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