Man accused of financing Jakarta attacks arrested

A Canadian and an Indonesian national, both civilians, also died and at least 20 people were injured. The group funded the attack through him, police said.

The five militants, who laid siege to a Starbucks cafe and police post at the busy downtown junction of Jalan M.H. Thamrin and Jalan K.H. Wahid Hasyim, were killed during the attacks.

Todd Elliot, an expert on militancy at Concord Consulting, said Thursday's assault showed local militants are still struggling to emulate that attack, or another Paris.

Indonesian TV reported Friday that police arrested three men on suspicion of links to Thursday's attack in Jakarta, NBC News reported.

Police spokesperson Anton Charliyan said the Jakarta five and the 12 others who were arrested had plans to attack cities elsewhere in Indonesia, including Bandung, which lies some 120 km southeast of the capital.

National police chief Badrodin Haiti said interviews with the 12 suspected terrorists arrested after the Jakarta blasts revealed further attacks were being planned. And no matter how "tiny" the group, as he called them, they have proved they can kill. The channel broadcast footage of the handcuffed men being escorted out by police to be questioned.

The police chief added that on January 11, three Malaysian IS suspects were arrested by security forces after being deported from Turkey. They also identified five bombers on Saturday, senior police officers said here.

All of the attackers were killed either by their suicide vests or by law enforcement.

Jakarta's chief of police, Insp Gen Tito Karnavian, said a hunt was under way for terror cells believed to be behind the attack.

One man waved a sign in English saying, "Indonesia United, We're not scared, we fight terrorism". The inspector-general of police, Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar, said in a statement Malaysia was now on "alert to the highest degree", according the the Malaysia Insider. Few have come back.

Naim, believed to be in his early 30s and associated with domestic Islamist militant groups in Indonesia, is thought to be in the Syrian city of Raqqa with Isis.

Naim is said to be a founding member of Katibah Nusantara, the grouping of Southeast Asian fighters in Syria.

One major worry is that Indonesians fighting in Syria and Iraq will return home, having gained training and combat experience. Onlookers and journalists lingered, with some people leaving flowers and messages of support.

On Tuesday, a Syrian suicide bomber killed 10 German tourists in Istanbul.

In Western capitals, Indonesia has always been a kind of poster child for progress: a developing nation with the world's largest Muslim population that has embraced both democracy and moderate Islam.

Risti Amelia, an accountant at a company near the Starbucks said she was "still shaking and weak" when she returned to her office Friday.

"He was an employee of a company where he worked as a courier", Mr Iqbal said.

"I am not afraid of terrorists because life is in Allah's hands, and today is Friday so, God willing, nothing bad will happen", said Toto Suhadi, 52, a gardener watering plants near the attack site.