An explosion that occurred this Friday in the mosque of a school complex in the Kelapa Gading area of Jakarta (Indonesia) injured 55 people, including numerous students. The deputy speaker of the country’s House of Representatives, Sufmi Dasco Ahmad, said the suspect in the attack, a 17-year-old who police say is a student at the center, is undergoing surgery in hospital. Official sources report that various hypotheses are being investigated, including that it was a terrorist attack.
Jakarta Metropolitan Police Chief Asep Edi Suheri said the victims included “minor” injuries and others with “serious” injuries, including burns from the blast. “Some victims suffered burns, others were injured and still others suffered minor injuries,” he said. All were admitted to hospitals.
The cause of the explosion, which occurred during Friday prayers, has not yet been confirmed, the police chief said. The ages of the people hospitalized are also unknown, with the exception of the alleged perpetrator. The first images of the event, in a video shared on media and social networks, show a young man being urgently carried on a stretcher by several students.
The authorities assure that they have sent “heavily armed” troops and police to the scene, while the investigations continue.
Indonesia is the country with the largest Muslim population in the world. With more than 275 million inhabitants, 87% identify as practicing Islam, according to data from the Office of Diplomatic Information of Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation.
