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Case file

2016 Jakarta attacks

Documents violence · ongoing investigation — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

On the morning of 14 January 2016, a series of explosions followed by gunfire struck central Jakarta, Indonesia, near the intersection of Jalan Kyai Haji Wahid Hasyim and Jalan MH Thamrin, close to the Sarinah shopping mall. One blast occurred at a Burger King restaurant outside the mall, and another damaged a traffic police post near a Starbucks outlet. The area is home to a United Nations information centre, luxury hotels, and foreign embassies. News media counted a total of six explosions, though several reported blasts elsewhere in the city, including near the Turkish and Pakistani embassies and in other neighborhoods, were later denied by Jakarta police as hoaxes.

Footage reportedly showed two attackers being killed when a suicide device detonated outside the Burger King outlet. Separately, two gunmen opened fire on a crowd gathered near the damaged police post, killing officers and taking two hostages—a Dutch and an Algerian national—at a nearby building before being shot dead by police. In total, four attackers and four civilians were killed, and roughly 20 to 23 other people were injured, including five police officers. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.

The four attackers who died were identified as Dian Juni Kurniadi and Ahmad Muhazab Saron (both 26), who died in the suicide bombing, and Afif Sunakim (also known as Sunardi) and Marwan (also known as Muhammad Ali, aged 40), who died in a shootout with police. Afif Sunakim had previously been sentenced to seven years in prison for attending a militant training camp. Indonesian police identified Bahrun Naim, an Indonesia-linked extremist who had relocated to Raqqa, Syria, as the alleged mastermind; Naim had prior contact with authorities dating to at least 2010, including a 2011 conviction on weapons charges.

The four civilians killed were named as Taher Amer-Ouali, 70, an Algerian-Canadian visiting family in Indonesia, who was shot; Rico Hermawan, around 20 or 21, an Indonesian man who had been summoned over a traffic offense when a bomb exploded at the police post; Sugito, 43, an Indonesian courier initially mistaken for a suspect due to a shared name; and Rais Karna, 37, an Indonesian bank employee who died in hospital two days later from a head wound. A Dutch United Nations official was also reported seriously injured.

In the aftermath, Indonesian security forces arrested twelve people two days after the attack, accused of plotting further attacks on government, police, and foreign targets in connection with the men who died in the Jakarta assault. Indonesian President Joko Widodo publicly condemned the attack as an "act of terror" and called for calm, a message echoed on social media under the hashtag #KamiTidakTakut ("We are not afraid"). The attack drew condemnation from numerous governments and international bodies, including the United Nations, the European Union, and ASEAN.

Key facts

Victims
Rais Karna, Sugito, Rico Hermawan, Taher Amer-Ouali
Date
2015
Location
Near Sarinah shopping mall, Jalan MH Thamrin, Central Jakarta, Indonesia
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2015-11

    Indonesian police reportedly received information about an Islamic State warning of a planned attack in Indonesia.

  2. 2016-01-14

    Multiple explosions and gunfire occurred near Sarinah mall in central Jakarta; four attackers and four civilians were killed and roughly 20-23 others injured.

  3. 2016-01-16

    Indonesian security forces arrested twelve people accused of plotting further attacks in connection with the assailants.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Ahmad Muhazab Saron

    CHARGED

    26-year-old attacker who died in a suicide bombing during the attack; named by police as a perpetrator.

    citation on file

  • Afif Sunakim

    CHARGED

    Attacker (also known as Sunardi) who died in a shootout with police; previously sentenced to seven years for attending a militant training camp; named by police as a perpetrator.

    citation on file

  • Dian Juni Kurniadi

    CHARGED

    26-year-old attacker who died in a suicide bombing during the attack; named by police as a perpetrator.

    citation on file

  • Rais Karna

    VICTIM

    37-year-old Indonesian bank office employee who died in hospital two days after the attack from a head wound.

    citation on file

  • Sugito

    VICTIM

    43-year-old Indonesian courier killed in the attack; initially mistaken for a suspect due to sharing a name with a suspected terrorist.

    citation on file

  • Marwan

    CHARGED

    40-year-old attacker (also known as Muhammad Ali) who died in a shootout with police; named by police as a perpetrator.

    citation on file

  • Rico Hermawan

    VICTIM

    Indonesian man, around 20 or 21, killed when a bomb exploded at the police post where he had been summoned over a traffic offense.

    citation on file

  • Taher Amer-Ouali

    VICTIM

    70-year-old Algerian-Canadian hearing care specialist visiting family in Indonesia; shot and killed during the attack.

    citation on file

  • Bahrun Naim

    CHARGED

    Indonesia-linked extremist identified by Jakarta police as the alleged mastermind behind the attack; previously convicted in 2011 on weapons charges.

    citation on file

Places

Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On 14 January 2016, coordinated bombings and gunfire near Jakarta's Sarinah shopping mall killed four attackers and four civilians and injured about 20 others, in an attack claimed by the Islamic State.
Where did the crime happen?
Near Sarinah shopping mall, Jalan MH Thamrin, Central Jakarta, Indonesia.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.

Sources

  1. 2016 Jakarta attackswikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Contemporaneous coverage — The New York Timesnews · The New York Times · 2026-07-07
  3. Contemporaneous coverage — BBC Newsnews · BBC News · 2026-07-07