Terrorists Strike Indonesia Capital; Istanbul Suicide Bomber Entered Turkey as Refugee; Door Still Open

Terrorists Strike Jakarta Indonesia

Terrorists set off bombs in multiple targets in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, killing at least seven in yet another Deadly Suicide Attack.

The gun-and-bomb attacks struck in the heart of the Jakarta’s downtown area, popular with shoppers and tourists and located near key government installations. Police said three civilians and four terrorists were killed.

At least six explosions went off, including blasts at a police station and at a security gate next to a Starbucks café and a Burger King near the popular Sarinah shopping mall during the late morning attack, according to witnesses and video. Blasts later exploded near the embassies of Turkey and Pakistan and police cleared the area from the shopping mall to the nearby Presidential Palace, local media reported.

Minister of Domestic Affairs Tjahjo Kumolo said suicide bombers were behind the attacks.

Istanbul Suicide Bomber Entered Turkey as Refugee

It's now confirmed, Istanbul Suicide Bomber Entered Turkey as Syrian Refugee, Officials Say

The Islamic State suicide bomber who killed 10 German tourists in the heart of Istanbul registered here as a Syrian refugee without setting off security alerts—even though his brother had blown himself up in Syria, Turkish officials said. The revelation highlighted concerns that extremists are using the migrant crisis to cross borders and carry out terrorist attacks.

Turkish officials identified the Istanbul bomber as Nabil Fadli, a Syrian born in 1988, who was fingerprinted in Turkey last week while registering as a refugee with immigration officials, but wasn’t on any watch list.

Muneef Taaei, a former Syrian opposition activist in the town where Mr. Fadli grew up, said Mr. Fadli was a regular foot soldier in Islamic State whose brother had blown himself up a few months ago in an attack on Syrian regime forces at an airport.

Mr. Fadli’s apparent ability to enter Turkey, register with immigration officials and carry out the attack without triggering any international terror alerts is likely to fuel concerns that Islamic State extremists are exploiting the migrant crisis to sneak across borders to stage attacks.

Turkey will step up its intelligence gathering operations, but it will not change its policy toward refugees, an official at Turkey’s emergency agency said.

Door Still Open

“Despite all kinds of dangers and risks, we haven't changed our open-door policy for the past five years,” said the official. “And we won't do that now, either. Only security precautions will continue to be tightened.”

While one cannot stop every terrorist attack, it's another thing indeed to openly invite them as these open door policies do.

These suicide attacks are the best possible ads for the Trump campaign, dropped right in his lap, and he didn't have to pay a dime.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock