Agencies, Jakarta – An explosion occurred outside a Catholic church in the Indonesian city of Makassar on Sunday, police said.

News footage showed police had set up a cordon around the church and cars parked nearby were damaged.

According to Reuters, a blast occurred outside a Catholic church in the Indonesian city of Makassar, which is located in the province of Southern Sulawesi.

Local media reported that Christians were performing Sunday service inside the church when the explosion happened.

The explosion occurred when locals gathered to spend their Sunday morning in the nearby Karebosi square.

Local media also reported that there were no immediate reports of casualties.

News footage showed cars near the building were damaged as police cordoned off the area.

The explosion at the city's main Catholic cathedral happened just after Sunday services wrapped up, a man identified as the church's pastor told Metro TV.

"We were finishing the service and people were going home when it happened," the man, identified by his first name Willem, was quoted as saying.

The pastor said a congregant tried to prevent what he described as a "suicide bomber" from entering the church, adding that about 10 people were injured.

Churches have been targeted in the past by extremists in Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim-majority nation.

In 2018, a dozen people were killed when a family of suicide bombers blew themselves up at churches during Sunday services in Indonesia's second-biggest city Surabaya.

Source: https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2021/03/28/explosion-rocks-church-in-makassar-police.htm