A terrorist attack by the Islamic State in Indonesia has claimed the lives of seven people, while 23 others are reported to have been injured.
The New York Times reports that the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack which they carried out in Jakarta, the country’s capital, on Thursday.
The attack took place in a part of the city which is near an upscale shopping area and various restaurants, hotels, and skyscrapers, including buildings occupied by the United Nations.
Jakarta’s Provincial Police Chief, General Tito Karnavian, revealed at a news conference on Thursday that the perpetrators of the attack were linked to Islamic State leaders in Raqqa, Syria.
The Indonesian attack has caused concern that the Islamic State is expanding its operations into Southeast Asia.
The organizer of the attack has been identified as Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian citizen and leader of Katibah Nusantara, a military unit which is part of the Islamic State and based in Southeast Asia. Naim is thought to currently be in Syria.
Five of the seven people killed in the attack were terrorists, while the other two were a Canadian citizen and an Indonesian native.
Photo courtesy: Wikipedia
Publication date: January 15, 2016
