Unconfirmed report says Canadian killed in Indonesian attack

“… fighters from the Islamic State carried out this morning an armed attack that targeted foreigners and the security forces tasked with protecting them in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta”.

“Our hearts of Canada and Canadians go out to the people of Indonesia and the families and victims of these bad attacks and we of course will be supporting the Indonesian government in anything it needs from Canada through this hard time”, Trudeau said, during a visit Thursday to Waterloo.

Police then combed the building housing the Starbucks and another nearby building, where they discovered six homemade bombs – five small ones and a big one.

Several hours after the attacks began, the witness heard more gunfire and at least one more explosion.

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, majority tourists. Twenty people, including a Dutch man, were wounded.

Attackers set off explosions at a Starbucks cafe in a bustling shopping area of downtown Jakarta and waged gun battles with police Thursday, leaving bodies in the streets as office workers watched in terror from high-rise windows.

Harvey tweeted out photos of a bombed-out police booth in Jakarta and a cachet of weapons allegedly recovered from the attackers.

Two of the militants were taken alive, police said.

In December, nine alleged Islamic State terrorists were arrested and police seized papers outlining a plan to “do a concert” in Jakarta. Five explosions occurred during the attacks.

Furthermore, The UN’s Environment Programme (UNEP) has confirmed that one of its employees have been severely injured during the attacks. Another was caused by a man on a motorcycle throwing a hand grenade.

Four attackers were also killed, police said. “We have detected communications between a Syrian group and the Solo group”, Deputy Police Chief Budi Gunawan said.

The Istana Negara presidential palace is about 2km (1.24 miles) away, near the United States embassy. Black armoured cars screeched to a halt in front of the Starbucks and sniper teams were deployed around the neighbourhood as helicopters buzzed overhead. The city centre’s notoriously jammed roads were largely deserted.

“The state, the nation and the people should not be afraid of, and lose to, such terror acts”, he said. “It was right across the street, kitty-corner to the office, about 100 metres”, the 44-year-old told The Canadian Press.

“Apparent suicide bomber literally 100m from the office and my hotel”.

Terrorists haven’t had the capacity to mount any major attacks since 2009, when suicide bombers attacked the Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta.

“The military and the police are well aware of the emerging threat and have been conducting operations to prevent terror acts anywhere in the country”.

Indonesia has been on alert over the threat of attacks by Takfiri groups and police have launched a crackdown on people with suspected links to the extremists.