Politics
Indonesia protest blaze kills 3 as anger erupts over driver death
- Makassar city council official accuses protesters of igniting blaze.
- Military chief says situation in Makassar returned to normal.
- Protesters in Bali say they want int’l attention about legal injustice.
A fire started by protesters at a council building in eastern Indonesia killed at least three people, a local official said Saturday, after demonstrations across the country following the death of a man hit by a police vehicle.
Southeast Asia’s biggest economy was rocked by protests in major cities including the capital Jakarta on Friday after footage spread of a motorcycle taxi driver being run over by a police tactical vehicle in earlier rallies against low wages and financial perks for lawmakers.
Protests in Makassar, the biggest city on the eastern island of Sulawesi, descended into chaos outside the provincial and local city council buildings, which were both set on fire as demonstrators hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails.
Three people were killed as a result of the fire at the Makassar city council, its secretary Rahmat Mappatoba told AFP. “They were trapped in the burning building,” he said, accusing protesters of igniting the blaze.
“Usually during a demonstration, protesters only throw rocks or burn a tyre in front of the office. They never stormed into the building or burned it.”
Two workers at the city council died at the scene and a third person, a civil servant, died in hospital.
At least four people were injured in the fire and were being treated at hospital, Rahmat added.
Hundreds of people were seen in footage posted by local media cheering and clapping as fire engulfed the building Friday with few security forces in sight.
One man was heard shouting: “There are people upstairs!”
In footage verified by AFP, smouldering debris was seen falling from the roof of the city council building surrounded by palm trees as charred cars flickered with flames.
Inside protesters lit several fires as parts of the building collapsed, while others smashed glass and chanted “revolution”.
By Saturday, the building appeared to be a blacked-out wreck, with dozens of charred cars around it, as local residents inspected the scene, local media footage showed.
Windiyatno, South Sulawesi’s military chief said in a statement on Saturday that the situation in Makassar had “now returned to normal”.
Makassar and South Sulawesi police did not immediately respond to AFP’s requests for comments.
Prabowo test
Protests continued on Saturday in different areas of Indonesia’s vast archipelago.
Hundreds of students and ojek drivers protested in front of the police headquarters in Bali, Indonesia’s most popular tourist hotspot.
“Bali is the centre of tourism in Indonesia, and we want to protest here to gain international attention about the legal injustice, corruption, and the impunity of police crimes,” protester Narendra Wicaksono told AFP.
Hundreds of students in Surabaya also rallied outside the East Java police headquarters, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
In Jakarta, hundreds had massed on Friday outside the headquarters of the elite Mobile Brigade Corp (Brimob) paramilitary police unit they blamed for motorcycle gig driver Affan Kurniawan’s death the day before.
Protesters threw firecrackers as police responded with tear gas.
Police said they had detained seven officers for questioning in connection with Affan’s death.
The protests were the biggest and most violent of Prabowo Subianto’s presidency, a key test for the leader less than a year into his rule.
He has urged calm, and ordered an investigation into the driver’s death and that the officers involved be held accountable.
Prabowo said on Friday the government was “committed to guaranteeing the livelihood” of the driver’s family, posting images on social media with them at their home.
He has pledged fast, state-driven growth but has already faced protests against widespread government budget cuts to fund his populist policies including a billion-dollar free meal programme.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was martyred in US and Israeli strikes, state media confirmed, as another wave of attacks hit the country on Sunday.
Several countries, global bodies and prominent groups responded to the assassination of Iran’s supreme leader, urging de-escalation.
Pakistan
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday denounced the targeting of Iran’s supreme leader in joint strikes by the United States and Israel, saying such actions were a “violation of the norms of international law”.
In a post on X, PM Shehbaz said that it was an age-old convention that the heads of state or government should not be targeted.
“Pakistan also expresses concern over the violation of the norms of international law. It is an age-old convention that the heads of state/government should not be targeted.”
Russia
President Vladimir Putin described Khamenei’s killing as a “cynical murder” that violated “all standards of human morality and international law”.
“Please accept my deep condolences in connection with the murder of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Seyed Ali Khamenei, and members of his family, committed in cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law.”
China
China said it “strongly condemns” the United States and Israel’s assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling again for a halt to military actions.
The assassination was “a serious violation of Iran’s sovereignty and security, a trampling on the aims and principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms of international relations”, Beijing’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
“China firmly opposes and strongly condemns this,” it added, calling for an “immediate halting of military operations”.
Malaysia
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday “unreservedly” condemned the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
“I unreservedly condemn the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. This act places the Middle East on the edge of grave and sustained instability. I extend my condolences to the Islamic Republic of Iran and to the Iranian people at this profoundly difficult momen,” wrote
Indonesia’s Ulema Muslim Clerical Council
“The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) expressed its deepest condolences for the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, as a result of the Israeli-American attack on February 28.
“The United States, which is playing a central role in managing the Palestinian conflict through the BoP (Board of Peace), faces a major question: is this strategy truly aimed at a just peace, or is it actually strengthening an unequal security architecture and burying Palestinian independence? Therefore, the MUI urges the Indonesian government to revoke its membership from the BoP.”
North Korea
North Korea condemned the US and Israeli strikes as an “illegal act of aggression”.
The attacks “constitute a thoroughly illegal act of aggression and the most vile form of violation of sovereignty in their nature”, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said, according to state media.
Iranian president
“The martyrdom of the Supreme Leader at the hands of Israel and the criminal America was a great disaster for our country… America and Israel should know that it will bring them nothing but embarrassment.”
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Sunday claimed it had launched ballistic missile strikes targeting a US aircraft carrier, identifying the vessel as the USS Abraham Lincoln, as part of what it called “Operation True Promise 4.”
In a statement, the IRGC’s public relations office said four ballistic missiles were fired at the carrier, adding that Iran’s military campaign had entered a “new phase.” The group warned that both land and sea would become the “burial place” for what it described as aggressors.
Multiple Waves of Strikes Announced
Earlier, the IRGC said it had launched the seventh and eighth waves of strikes under the same operation, in response to what it termed ongoing aggression by the United States and Israel.
Iran claimed it had carried out precision strikes on military targets in Israeli territory, including areas near Tel Aviv and Haifa. It also alleged that Israeli officials had taken shelter due to heightened security concerns.
Targets Across the Gulf
The IRGC further stated that it had targeted US-operated facilities in West Asia, including the US Fifth Fleet base in Bahrain, as well as installations in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
There has been no immediate confirmation from US or Israeli officials regarding the reported missile strikes or the extent of any damage.
Rising Regional Tensions
The developments mark a sharp escalation in regional tensions following reported military exchanges between Iran, Israel and US forces over the weekend.
Independent verification of the claims remains pending, and international observers have urged restraint amid fears of a broader conflict across the Middle East.
A number of Iranian senior leaders, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have embraced martyrdom in the “unprovoked and unwarranted” airstrikes by Israel and the United States.
As crowds gathered in Tehran, explosions rang out, and the Israeli military announced that it was again striking targets in the heart of the city — as more blasts were heard in Jerusalem, Riyadh, Dubai, Doha and Manama.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian declared Khamenei’s assassination a “declaration of war against Muslims” and warned: “Iran considers it its legitimate duty and right to avenge the perpetrators and masterminds of this historic crime.”
Iranian state media have confirmed the killing of several senior figures:
1. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, supreme leader of Iran
2. Ali Shamkhani, representative of the Supreme Leader in the Supreme Defence Council
3. General Abdolrahim Mousavi, Iran’s Armed Forces chief of staff
4. Major General Mohammad Pakpour, commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)
5. Aziz Nasirzadeh, Minister of Defence
6. Gholamreza Rezaian, police intelligence chief of Iran
Separately, the daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter of Ali Khamenei also embraced martyrdom in the US and Israeli airstrikes.
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