A group of armed men on Friday attacked the Ahmadiyah mosque in Kebayoran

JAKARTA, INDONESIA (BNO NEWS) -- A group of armed men on Friday attacked the Ahmadiyah mosque in Kebayoran Lama, south Jakarta, but no fatalities were reported, officials said.

The attack took place in the early hours of Friday and the attackers armed with swords and machetes smashed windows and lamps. The attack lasted less than a minute.


"The attackers claimed to be from the Majelis Pembela Rasulullah [Rasulullah Defender's Council," the mosque security head Deden Sudjana said.

After the attack, police forces arrived at the scene and secured the area. Police officers even fired warning shots to disperse the attackers but did not apprehend any of them.

In October, hundreds of people sea a mosque and five residences on fire in the Ciampea village in Bogor. The houses belonged to followers of Ahmadiyah. Residents had to flee to avoid been attacked by the angry mob.

The attack was made following reports that an Ahmadiyah member stabbed a relative of one of the attackers which caused anger in the village's population.

The Indonesian Ulema Council has banned Ahmadiyah and its teachings, calling the sect as heretical.

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Jakarta Police Help Repel Attack on Ahmadiyah Mosque
Arientha Primanita, Nivell Rayda & Zaky Pawas | December 04, 2010

Jakarta. A group of about 50 people, dressed in white robes and wielding weapons, attempted to attack an Ahmadiyah mosque in South Jakarta early on Friday morning, but they were chased off with help from police officers.

Firdaus Mubarik, spokesman for the South Jakarta branch of Ahmadiyah, said the congregation was warned by police of the impending attack.

A number of members, along with three police officers, stood guard over the Al Hidayah Mosque off Jalan Ciputat Raya in Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta.

“At 12:37 a.m., 50 people came to the mosque wearing white clothing and wielding sharp weapons like samurai,” he said.

Firdaus said the police fired six warning shots, causing the group to scatter. “The whole incident took about 10 seconds. It was recorded on our CCTV.”

The footage showed the group was mostly made up of teenagers armed with wooden canes and iron bars.

One assailant tried to pick up a rock while another attempted to climb the gates before the pack panicked and fled.

Seconds later, police and civilians were seen chasing the mob away.

One man from the group was detained and taken to the Kebayoran Lama Police station.

Jakarta Police Chief Insp. Gen. Sutarman pledged firm action against the perpetrators.

The damage from the attack was fairly minor, but pluralism advocates are more worried about what the attack means.

“This is proof that intolerance is really happening in the capital,” said Ismail Hasani, a researcher for the Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy, which recently released a survey showing that 45.4 percent of respondents from Greater Jakarta wanted the Ahmadiyah, a minority Islamic sect, disbanded.



Jakarta Globe