JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Multiple explosions rocked a mosque at a high school during Friday prayers in Jakarta, Indonesia's capital, injuring at least 54 people, mostly students, police said.
Witnesses told local TV stations they heard at least two loud explosions around noon as the sermon began at the SMA 27 mosque, a public high school on the naval compound in northern Jakarta's Kelapa Gading district. Students and others ran out of the building in panic as gray smoke filled the mosque.
Most of the victims suffered minor to severe injuries from glass fragments. The cause of the explosions was not immediately known, but Jakarta Police Chief Asep Edi Suheri said they occurred near the mosque's loudspeaker.
People were rushed to nearby hospitals. Some were soon sent home, but 20 students remain in the hospital, three of them with serious injuries, the police chief said.
Sukheri said that the bomb squad that arrived at the scene found toy rifles and a toy pistol near the mosque.
“Police are still investigating the scene to determine the cause of the explosions,” Sukheri said and urged that there should be no speculation that the incident was an attack until the police investigation is completed.
“Let the authorities work first,” Sukheri said. “We will update the public with any findings.”
