At least two civilians – thought to be a Canadian and an Indonesian – were reported to have died in the attack on Starbucks.
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The area also has many luxury hotels, and offices and consulates, including the French embassy.
A general view shows a police cordon sealing off the scene of a bomb blast in Jakarta, Indonesia, 14 January 2016.
Earlier, local police spokesman Gen. Anton Charliyan said that the assailants had “imitated the terror actions in Paris” which led him to suspect that ISIS was behind the attacks.
Tri Seranto, a bank security guard, told The Associated Press he saw at least five attackers, including three who triggered explosions at the Starbucks. According to a corresponded for Australian ABC, two of the injured are Dutch, one of them an United Nations official who was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition.
He said the other two attackers, carrying handguns, entered a police post from where he heard gunfire.
Four people, including one policeman, are dead following a series of explosions and a firefight in central Jakarta.
“Our nation and our people should not be afraid, we will not be defeated by these acts of terror”, he said, in comments broadcast by MetroTV.
Clarke Jones, a counterterrorism expert at the Australian National University, said that the attack was of a “fairly amateurish type, with hand grenades and firearms”.
Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said in a statement on national TV that the situation was under control and called on people to remain calm.
Other blasts were reportedly heard in the Cikini, Silpi and Kuningan neighbourhoods, near the Pakistan and Turkish embassies. Five of the attackers were also killed.
Two Western hotels in Jakarta were bombed in 2009, and more than 200 people were killed in 2002 at a nightclub on the tourist island of Bali.
He added: “And folks in office saying think it is a Paris typle foreign fighters ISIS supporters attack”.
“Today’s attacks indicate that militants are again targeting commercial premises, particularly global brands that would provide terrorists’ with greater worldwide exposure”, he said.
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Following the attack, Ottawa updated its travel advisory for Indonesia, warning Canadians that they should exercise a “high degree of caution” there due to a “continuing threat of terrorist attacks” in the country.
