JAKARTA: Indonesian anti-terrorism police killed three suspects after a gunfight at a house south of the capital, Jakarta, where a bomb was found, a police spokesman said on Wednesday.

The raid came soon after Indonesian police had said they were interrogating 14 suspects after a series of arrests relating to planned suicide attacks in the capital, Jakarta, and elsewhere.

“During the raid, we tried to be careful but they threw something from inside the house and it was a bomb but it did not explode. Then they fired from inside,” national police spokesman Rikwanto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name, told Metro TV.

Indonesian television footage showed a bomb squad officer wearing a blast-resistant suit entering the house in South Tangerang, as locals watched from behind a police tape.

“Inside the house we found a bigger bomb and now we are investigating it to try to detonate it,” Rikwanto said.

He said one suspect had been found alive.

Ayi Supardan, a senior officer from South Tangerang police, said that, after initial interrogation of the suspect who was found alive, it appeared there was a plan to use the larger bomb at the end of the year.

There was no indication of any possible target.

Planned suicide attacks

Earlier on Tuesday, Indonesian police said they were interrogating 14 suspects related to planned suicide attacks in Jakarta and outside the most populous island of Java.

The suspects held over the planned Jakarta attack had been communicating with, and received money from, Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant known to be fighting with the Islamic State militant group in Syria.

Two men were arrested in the Central Java city of Solo on Sunday on suspicion they made explosives to be carried by a female accomplice, said Martinus Sitompul, a spokesman for the national police.

A suspected female suicide bomber had been arrested in Purworejo, also in Central Java, last Thursday, he said.

“The group was planning to carry out an attack outside Java,” Sitompul said. He declined to elaborate and said police would hold a news briefing later this week.

The three were linked to a group police arrested earlier this month for planning an attack at the changing of the guard at Jakarta’s presidential palace, he added.

In both cases, police suspect the groups planned to use a female suicide bomber, a new tactic for attacks in Indonesia.

Security is usually stepped up in Indonesia at this time of year, following attacks in previous years during Christmas and New Year celebrations.

Earlier on Tuesday, a bomb squad on the Indonesian island of Bali detonated an unattended backpack in the city of Ubud with a sign saying “bomb”. Bali police spokesman Made Sudana said there was no bomb threat and it contained fireworks, adding the backpack belonged to a Dutch man who had lost it.

Bali has suffered two major attacks including nightclub bombings in 2002 that killed 202 people, and suicide attacks in 2005 that killed 20.



</s>JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesian anti-terrorism police killed three suspects in a gunfight on the outskirts of the capital, Jakarta, on Wednesday and foiled a suicide bomb plot, a police spokesman said.

Indonesian police officers stand outside a home following a gunfight in which three suspected militants were killed in South Tangerang, Banten province near Jakarta, Indonesia December 21, 2016 in this photo taken by Antara Foto. Antara Foto/Muhammad Iqba/via REUTERS

The raid is the latest in a series over recent weeks that police say have disrupted bomb plots, raising concern that homegrown militants in the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation are getting bolder in their attempts to launch attacks.

Police said this week that at least 14 people were being interrogated over suicide bomb plots targeting the presidential palace in Jakarta and an another undisclosed location. Both involved female suicide bombers - a new tactic for Indonesian militants.

After Wednesday’s raid, police said the suspects, who authorities believe are supporters of the Islamic State militant group, had planned to stab officers at a traffic post, and then detonate a “large, homemade” bomb as crowds gathered.

The attack was planned for the end of the year.

“The intention was for a suicide bomb,” national police spokesman Rikwanto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name, told a news conference.

Police said a total of five bombs were found at the house in South Tangerang.

Television footage showed a bomb squad officer wearing a blast-resistant suit entering the house as residents watched from behind a police line.

“During the raid, we tried to be careful but they threw something from inside the house and it was a bomb but it did not explode. Then they fired from inside,” Rikwanto earlier told Metro TV.

He said one suspect was captured.

Separately, police arrested three more people in three near simultaneous raids in Sumatra and Batam islands, on suspicion of working with known militants and helping ethnic Uighur Muslims from China enter Indonesia to join militant networks.

President Joko Widodo commended security forces for preventing attacks and called on the public to be vigilant against the spread of radicalism.

“We hope the public can also help fortify this country against terrorism and radicalism,” Widodo said in a statement.

Indonesia has suffered several major militant attacks over the years, the worst of which was the 2002 bombing on the holiday island of Bali that killed 202 people, many of them foreigners.

That attack led to Western help and funding for an elite counter-terrorism unit, which has been effective in stamping out militant cells.

Authorities, however, now worry about a resurgence in radicalism, inspired in part by Islamic State.

Slideshow (3 Images)

A gun and bomb assault in the heart of Jakarta in January killed four people and was the first attack in Southeast Asia claimed by Islamic State.

Police have arrested dozens of suspected militants in recent months, including a cell in Indonesia’s Batam island that planned a rocket attack on neighbouring Singapore.

Many suspects from the most recent arrests were found with military-grade explosives and police say they had been communicating with and receiving money from Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant known to be fighting with Islamic State in Syria.</s>Three-suspected terrorists were killed in Jakarta, Indonesia, following a gunfight at a home where a bomb was found, police say.

Anti-terrorism police killed three suspects after a gunfight at a house south of the capital where a bomb was found, a police spokesman said on Wednesday.

The raid came soon after Indonesian police had said they were interrogating 14 suspects after a series of arrests relating to planned suicide attacks in the capital, Jakarta, and elsewhere.

'During the raid, we tried to be careful but they threw something from inside the house and it was a bomb but it did not explode. Then they fired from inside,' national police spokesman Rikwanto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name, told Metro TV.

Indonesian television footage showed a bomb squad officer wearing a blast-resistant suit entering the house in South Tangerang, as locals watched from behind a police tape.

'Inside the house we found a bigger bomb and now we are investigating it to try to detonate it,' Rikwanto said.

He said one suspect had been found alive.

Ayi Supardan, a senior officer from South Tangerang police, said that, after initial interrogation of the suspect who was found alive, it appeared there was a plan to use the larger bomb at the end of the year.

There was no indication of any possible target.

As a result the Australian government has heightened its travel warning to Indonesia.

Earlier on Tuesday, Indonesian police said they were interrogating 14 suspects related to planned suicide attacks in Jakarta and outside the most populous island of Java.

The suspects held over the planned Jakarta attack had been communicating with, and received money from, Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant known to be fighting with the Islamic State militant group in Syria, police have said. (Reporting by Gayatri Suroyo; Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Paul Tait)</s>Indonesian anti-terrorism police killed three suspects after a gunfight at a house south of the capital, Jakarta, where a bomb was found, a police spokesman said on Wednesday.

The men planned to stage their attack on Christmas Day or New Year’s Eve, Jakarta police chief Mochamad Iriawan said in a television interview. They were to stab police officers in order to attract a crowd and then detonate bombs, he said.

The raid came soon after Indonesian police had said they were interrogating 14 suspects after a series of arrests relating to planned suicide attacks in the capital, Jakarta, and elsewhere.

“During the raid, we tried to be careful but they threw something from inside the house and it was a bomb but it did not explode. Then they fired from inside,” national police spokesman Rikwanto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name, told Metro TV.

Indonesian television footage showed a bomb squad officer wearing a blast-resistant suit entering the house in South Tangerang, as locals watched from behind a police tape.

“Inside the house we found a bigger bomb and now we are investigating it to try to detonate it,” Rikwanto said.

He said one suspect had been found alive.

Ayi Supardan, a senior officer from South Tangerang police, said after initial interrogation of the suspect who was found alive, it appeared there was a plan to use the larger bomb at the end of the year.

There was no indication of any possible target.

Earlier on Tuesday, Indonesian police said they were interrogating 14 suspects related to planned suicide attacks in Jakarta and outside the most populous island of Java.

The suspects held over the planned Jakarta attack had been communicating with, and received money from, Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant known to be fighting with the Islamic State militant group in Syria, police have said.</s>The raid came soon after Indonesian police had said they were interrogating 14 suspects after a series of arrests relating to planned suicide attacks in the capital, Jakarta, and elsewhere.

"During the raid, we tried to be careful but they threw something from inside the house and it was a bomb but it did not explode. Then they fired from inside," national police spokesman Rikwanto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name, told Metro TV.

Indonesian television footage showed a bomb squad officer wearing a blast-resistant suit entering the house in South Tangerang, as locals watched from behind a police tape.

"Inside the house we found a bigger bomb and now we are investigating it to try to detonate it," Rikwanto said.

He said one suspect had been found alive.

Ayi Supardan, a senior officer from South Tangerang police, said that, after initial interrogation of the suspect who was found alive, it appeared there was a plan to use the larger bomb at the end of the year.

There was no indication of any possible target.

Earlier on Tuesday, Indonesian police said they were interrogating 14 suspects related to planned suicide attacks in Jakarta and outside the most populous island of Java.

The suspects held over the planned Jakarta attack had been communicating with, and received money from, Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant known to be fighting with the Islamic State militant group in Syria, police have said.</s>Indonesian anti-terrorism police have shot and killed three suspects after a gun battle at a house near the capital Jakarta, police said.

The residential neighborhood of South Tangerang was evacuated after the suspects allegedly threw explosives at police and other, larger devices were found at the house, police said.

Jakarta police chief Mochamad Iriawan said explosive experts had defused two bombs and were still in the house.

The men planned to stage their attack on Christmas Day or New Year’s Eve, Iriawan said in a televised interview from the neighborhood south of the city. They were to stab police officers in order to attract a crowd and then detonate bombs, he said.

The three men were killed in a shoot-out with the police’s anti-terror squad after refusing an appeal from authorities to surrender and come out of the house in a leafy residential compound in Tangerang, a Jakarta satellite city.

National Police spokesman Rikwanto said the men threw explosives and fired guns at police. A fourth man, who was arrested in the neighborhood, had led police to the house used by the militants.

“During the raid, we tried to be careful but they threw something from inside the house and it was a bomb but it did not explode. Then they fired from inside,” said Rikwanto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name.



Indonesian television footage showed a bomb squad officer wearing a blast-resistant suit entering the house as locals watched from behind a police tape.

The authorities believe the suspects were linked to several militants arrested on 10 December in another neighborhood on the outskirts of Jakarta who were allegedly planning a suicide bomb attack on a guard-changing ceremony at the presidential palace the next day.



Police have attributed that foiled plot, in which a woman was to be the suicide bomber, to Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian with the Islamic State group in Syria.

They also say Naim was behind a bomb lab that was raided last month in West Java and contained enough explosive materials to make bombs three times more powerful than those used in the 2002 Bali bombings.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for an attack which killed eight people in Jakarta in January.

Indonesia has carried out a sustained crackdown on Islamic militants since the Bali bombings. But a new threat has emerged in the past several years from militants who have switched allegiance to the Islamic State group and from new recruits.

The Australian government’s advice to travellers was updated on Wednesday and said the terrorist threat level in Indonesia remains high.</s>INDONESIAN anti-terrorism police killed three suspects in a gunfight on the outskirts of the capital, Jakarta, on Wednesday and foiled a suicide bomb plot, a police spokesman said.

The raid was the latest in a series over recent weeks that police say have disrupted bomb</s>Indonesia's anti-terrorism police on Wednesday killed three suspected militants after a fierce gunbattle at a house in the south of the capital city of Jakarta, a police spokesperson said.

The Indonesian police raided the suspects' house after they interrogated at least 14 people after a string of arrests associated with multiple suicide attacks in Jakarta and other regions of the country. Reports state that during the raid, the suspects threw something at them which turned out to be a bomb, which did not explode.

"During the raid, we tried to be careful but they threw something from inside the house and it was a bomb but it did not explode. Then they fired from inside," national police spokesperson Rikwanto told Metro TV.

A television footage shown by an Indonesia media channel showed a bomb diffusal squad official wearing a blast-resistant suit and entering the suspects' house where the bomb had been thrown from.

"Inside the house we found a bigger bomb and now we are investigating it to try to detonate it," the police spokesperson said. He also added that one of the suspects in the incident has been found alive.

According to a senior officer from South Tengerang police, after the investigators questioned the suspect who was taken alive, they found out that they were planning to use a bigger bomb in the capital at the end of the year. The suspect, however, did not indicate any specific target of their plan.

The Indonesian police had interrogated at least 14 people earlier this week over suicide bomb plots targeting the presidential palace in the capital and also an undisclosed location outside Java island. Reports state that both the incidents involved a female suicide bomber, which is a new tactic adopted by the militants in Indonesia.

The authorities believe that the suspects killed were supporters of the Islamic State (ISIS) group and were planning to detonate a "large, homemade" bomb after stabbing some officers at a traffic post.</s>Armed Indonesian police secure a house after a firefight erupted as alleged militants had opened fire at officers in South Tangerang, 25 kilometres (15 miles) outside the capital Jakarta.

JAKARTA: Indonesian police killed three terrorists and arrested another yesterday during a raid outside Jakarta, foiling a plan to stage a suicide attack on police officers guarding Christmas celebrations.

The terrorists had planned to stab a police officer first and to carry out a suicide bombing when a crowd gathered, Jakarta police chief Inspector General M. Iriawan said.

"We have seized evidence. Several bombs, including a pipe bomb, fire arms, backpacks with live bombs inside," he said.

Police spokesman Brigadier General Rikwanto said: "We have yet to find out the role of each of them, including who could have been the suicide bomber."

He said the men were linked to a terror cell in Solo, Central Java, whose plan to attack the presidential palace in Jakarta was foiled earlier this month.

The police conducted the raid at a rented house in a residential area called Puri Serpong 2 in South Tangerang, Banten province.

The terrorists were identified only as Omen, Helmi and Irwan. The man arrested was Adam.

Another police spokesman Awi Setiyono said two of the terrorists are members of the Jamaah Ansharut Daulah network, an offshoot of the Jemaah Islamiyah group, but he did not identify the two.

"The three killed terrorists resisted arrest during the raid by throwing a bomb and firing shots at police. Police also found a bigger bomb in the house," BG Rikwanto told Metro TV.

He also said the Detachment 88 anti-terror squad was stepping up raids ahead of year-end festivities.

Like in previous years, the police had deployed additional officers at strategic locations, usually near churches.

The anti-terror unit had earlier arrested at least 10 members of the Solo cell, which police said was set up by Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant who is in the Middle East fighting alongside the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militant group.

Among the members of the group arrested were three women, including Dian Yulia Novi, who had worked as a maid in Singapore and Taiwan. Dian, 27, had hidden a homemade "rice-cooker" bomb in her rented room, where she was arrested in Bekasi, West Java.

Police said investigations are continuing into the larger network and its agenda, AFP reported.

Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, suffered many deadly homegrown attacks during the last decade - including the 2002 Bali bombings which killed over 200 people.

A sustained crackdown has weakened many of the extremist networks, but there have been fears of a resurgence in militancy. Police believe hundreds of Indonesians have travelled to Syria to fight with militant groups, including ISIS.</s>JAKARTA - Indonesian police killed three terrorists and arrested another one on Wednesday (Dec 21) during a raid outside Jakarta, foiling a plan to stage a suicide attack on police officers guarding Christmas celebrations.

The terrorists had planned to stab a police officer first and when a crowd gathers, they will carry out a suicide bombing, Jakarta police chief Inspector General M. Iriawan told reporters.

"We have seized evidence. Several bombs, including a pipe bomb, fire arms, backpacks with live bombs inside," he added.

Police spokesman Brigadier General Rikwanto said: "We have yet to find out the role of each of them, including who could have been the suicide bomber."

He said the men were linked to a terror cell in Solo, Central Java, whose plan to attack the presidential palace in Jakarta was foiled earlier this month.

The police conducted the raid at a rented house in a residential area called Puri Serpong 2 in South Tangerang, Banten province.

The terrorists were identified only as Omen, Helmi and Irwan. The man arrested was Adam.

Another police spokesman Awi Setiyono said two of the terrorists are members of Jamaah Ansharut Daulah, but he did not identify the two.

"The three killed terrorists resisted arrest during the raid by throwing a bomb and firing shots at police. The bomb didn't go off. Police also found a bigger bomb in the house," BG Rikwanto told Metro TV.

He also said the Detachment 88 anti-terror squad was stepping up raids ahead of year end festivities. Like in previous years, the police had deployed additional officers at strategic locations, usually near churches.

The anti-terror unit had earlier arrested at least 14 members of the Solo cell, which police said was set up by Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant who is in the Middle East fighting alongside the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militant group.

Among the members of the group arrested so far are three women, including Dian Yulia Novi, who had worked as a maid in Singapore and Taiwan. Dian, 27, had hidden a homemade “rice-cooker” bomb in her rented room where she was arrested in Bekasi, West Java.
Indonesian police kill three people in a gunfight south of Jakarta after a bomb is found. Fourteen people are arrested in connection to alleged involvement in plans for suicide bomb attacks.