Suicide bomber's attack on Indonesian church fails after his backpack bomb catches fire

A would-be suicide bomber has been detained in Indonesia after he attempted to blow up a church with a backpack bomb. When the attacker's bomb failed to detonate he attacked the priest giving the service with an axe.

The Associated Press reported that the bomber had hoped to target worshipers at Sunday mass in Medan, the capital of North Sumatra province. As the priest was giving the service the bomber, who police have said is 18 years-old, charged at the altar and attempted to detonate his device.

While the rucksack caught fire, it didn't explode. The worshipers in the church chased the man down and captured him, but before they were able to subdue him, he took an axe from his bag and attacked the priest, 60 year-old Albert Pandiangan, causing a slight injury to his hand.

National police spokesman Major General Boy Rafli Ama has said the motive for the attack at the Roman Catholic church dedicated to St Yoseph was not clear. Police were interrogating the failed bomber, who has said he was not working alone.

Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, has suffered a string of deadly attacks by militants since the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people.

In August, police in Indonesia arrested a man linked to a planned terrorist attack on the popular tourist island of Bali. He was also understood to be linked to Islamic State (Isis) and to a suicide bombing attack on a police station in the country, carried out in July 2016

The man was believed to be a member of an Indonesian militant group run by Bahrun Naim from Syria, which is linked to IS. Naim is alleged to have paid Rp5,000,000 (£290) to people to help carry out the attacks.