ISIL ATTACK in Jakarta: ‘A SHOOTOUT in the streets’
CANADIAN AMONG DEAD IN CO- ORDINATED TERROR ATTACKS
A Canadian man was killed when suspected Islamist terrorists set off explosives at a Starbucks in Indonesia’s capital then sprayed gunfire at the fleeing customers.
The attackers later waged a savage gun battle with police that turned a major downtown street in Jakarta — with luxury hotels and not far from the presidential palace and the U. S. Embassy — into a battleground.
Police said five attackers and two civilians were killed, while 10 people were injured in Thursday’s brazen at- tacks, which followed several warnings by police that Islamic extremists were planning something big.
On Friday, police arrested three men in Depok, on the outskirts of Jakarta, on suspicion of links to the attacks.
Jakarta police chief Maj.- Gen. Tito Karnavian told a news conference that the first attack — a suicide bombing — happened at a Starbucks, causing customers to run outside, where two gunmen opened fire, killing the Canadian and wounding an Indonesian.
At about the same time two other suicide bombers attacked a nearby traffic police booth, killing themselves and an Indonesian man.
Moments later, Karnavian said, a group of policemen were attacked by two remaining gunmen, using homemade bombs. This led to a 15-minute gunfight, he said.
All five gunmen were killed and 20 people were wounded in the attacks, police said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Ottawa was working with Indonesian authorities to confirm the reports of a Canadian killed in the attacks.
“The hearts of Canada and Canadians go out to the people of Indonesia and all the families and victims of these terrible attacks,” Trudeau said.
Islamic State group backers have circulated a claim of responsibility on Twitter for the attack and Indonesian police said the extremists were affiliated with the Islamic State group.
A Canadian man working with the United Nations was in Jakarta for a meeting on Thursday and witnessed the panic triggered by the latemorning explosions.
Jeremy Douglas, of Port Perry, Ont., was in a car when he first got a call from a UN security officer advising him there had been a blast very close to the office he was heading to.
In minutes, he had arrived at the building and was getting out of his vehicle when a second explosion occurred.
“I hadn’t even closed the car door and you heard the explosion. It was right across the street,” the 44- year- old told The Canadian Press.
At first, it was unclear what had occurred and confusion reigned, Douglas said, but later small blasts sent people scurrying for cover.
Douglas and his colleagues rushed into the UN office building to a secure floor where they could see police and other security forces responding to the attack.
While inside, he said he heard the sound of gunfire as assailants and police faced off.
“They started a shootout in the street,” he said. “We were witnessing the tactical team sweeping ... some armoured personnel carrier moved up the street. It was pretty crazy.
“There were a lot of people in the Starbucks,” he said, noting that UN staff had been injured at the café. “This is right in the centre of it, it’s pretty amazing that it was so few killed.”
Authorities also said they found a large, undetonated bomb and five smaller devices in a building near the Starbucks café after the attack.
“So we think ... their plan was to attack people and follow it up with a larger explosion when more people gathered,” said Maj. Gen. Anton Charliyan, spokesman of Indonesia’s national police. “But thank God it didn’t happen.”
It was the first major attack in Indonesia’s capital since the 2009 bombings of two hotels that killed seven people and injured more than 50.