Man attacks church in Indonesia, suicide bomb and axe in hand

An attempted suicide bomber failed to blow himself up during mass at a Catholic church in Indonesia, using an axe to assault a priest after his bomb did not detonate.

According to Indonesian police, the 18-year-old ran towards the altar of the packed church but the explosives in his backpack only burned, not fully exploding.

The assailant then reportedly took out an axe from the bag and used it to attack 60-year-old Albert Pandiangan.

The priest is said to have suffered a slight injury to his left hand, according to national police spokesman Major-General Boy Rafli Amar.

Police also said the man was carrying a piece of paper with a hand-drawn Islamic State symbol on it.

There have been several attacks on religious minorities in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country.

A January suicide attack in the capital Jakarta killed eight people, including four attackers.

Police are still investigating the motive for Sunday’s attempted bombing.