Jakarta Mosque Explosion Injures Over 50 During Friday Prayers

Hadisur Rahman, JadeTimes Staff

H. Rahman is a Jadetimes news reporter covering Business

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Image Credit: Reuters

More than 50 people were injured in a powerful explosion during Friday prayers at a mosque inside a school complex in Kelapa Gading, a district of Jakarta, Indonesia. Authorities identified a 17-year-old student as the suspected perpetrator of the blast, which occurred shortly after noon local time.

The explosion tore through the state-run high school’s mosque at around 12:15 p.m., injuring dozens of students and staff. Many victims sustained severe burns and other wounds. The suspected attacker was also injured and is currently under police custody.

Indonesia’s police chief, Listyo Sigit Prabowo, said a full investigation is underway to determine how the device was made and what motivated the attack. A bomb disposal team was deployed to secure the area and search for any additional explosives.

Witnesses described scenes of panic and chaos as white smoke filled the air and windows shattered. “Our hearts were beating fast, we couldn’t breathe,” said a school cook who was nearby when the explosion occurred.

Students who knew the suspect told local media that he had often been bullied and was known for disturbing drawings that depicted violence. Others described him as a quiet loner who rarely interacted with classmates.

Images circulated online showing two objects resembling firearms found at the scene. However, officials later confirmed that these were toy guns, not real weapons. A green belt believed to be used for storing cartridges was also recovered.

Lodewijk Freidrich Paulus, a senior government minister who visited the site, urged the public not to jump to conclusions about terrorism, noting that the investigation was still ongoing.

Indonesia, home to the world’s largest Muslim population, has faced sporadic acts of violence over the years, but authorities say it remains too early to determine whether Friday’s explosion was ideologically motivated or a personal act of retaliation.