JAKARTA:Attackers set off explosions at a Starbucks cafe in a bustling shopping area in Indonesia’s capital and waged gunbattles with police today, leaving bodies in the streets as office workers watched in terror from high-rise buildings.
Police said five attackers and two civilians were killed, while 10 people were injured in the brazen attacks, which followed several warnings in recent weeks by police that Islamic militants were planning something big. It was unclear if any perpetrators remained at large.
Five hours after the major downtown street in Jakarta – not far from the presidential palace and the US Embassy – turned into a battleground, police declared the area near the Sarinah shopping mall secure.
“We believe there are no more attackers around Sarinah. We have taken control,” Jakarta police spokesman Col. Muhammad Iqbal said.
Gen. Anton Charilyan, a national police spokesman, said the attack involved an unknown number of assailants with grenades and guns. He said they imitated the recent “terror acts” in Paris and were likely from the Islamic State group, but gave no evidence.(agencies)
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