Man wielding IS symbol shot dead

Indonesian police shot dead a man carrying knives and suspected pipe bombs after he launched a daylight assault on officers near Jakarta yesterday, an official said, in an attack later claimed by the Islamic State group.

The man was shot three times as he stabbed wildly at officers on a busy intersection in Tangerang, a satellite city outside the capital, Jakarta police spokesman Awi Setiyono told AFP.

Setiyono said the perpetrator threw two suspected pipe bombs at the officers, but neither detonated, and displayed an IS symbol on a nearby traffic pole during the frenzied attack.

"A man suddenly stuck an IS logo sticker on a traffic police post, took a machete from his bag and blindly attacked our personnel," he said.

The attacker -- believed to be a member of a local hardline group -- was also carrying a turban, along with knives and the suspected bombs, Setiyono added.

The 21-year-old attacker later died of his wounds, the spokesman said, adding that the attacker had two brothers who were police officers in Tangerang.

Three officers were injured and taken to hospital.

The IS-linked Amaq news agency claimed credit for the incident, saying the policemen were wounded by "fighters from the Islamic State", according to the SITE monitoring group.