Starbucks closing Jakarta stores ‘until further notice’ – statement

JAKARTA, Indonesia (UPDATED) – Starbucks is closing all of its Jakarta branches “until further notice”, the global coffee giant said after one of its stores in the Indonesian capital was hit by apparent suicide attacks on Thursday, January 14.

“This store and all other Starbucks stores in Jakarta will remain closed, out of an abundance of caution, until further notice. We are monitoring this situation closely,” the company said in a statement.

At least 6 people were killed in the blasts.

At least one gunman fired repeatedly at bystanders, reloading his weapon as police flooded the streets, they said.

Badly mangled bodies were seen lying on the road as security forces moved in behind the cover of moving vehicles, with regular bursts of gunfire and warnings of a sniper in the area.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country, suffered several major bomb attacks by Islamic radicals between 2000 and 2009, including the 2002 strike on the resort island of Bali that killed 202 people.

The police said ISIS issued a cryptic warning before the blasts. – Rappler.com