Protests Escalate Across Indonesia as Students and Workers Clash With Police (VIDEO)

Widespread protests continued across Indonesia on Friday as workers and students took to the streets to demonstrate against the government and worsening economic conditions.

The unrest, now in its fifth consecutive day, has spread to multiple cities, including Makassar in Sulawesi, where protesters set fire to political offices, marking the sixth or seventh such incident in recent weeks.

In the capital Jakarta, tensions soared as demonstrators marched toward the headquarters of the police mobile brigade. Some protesters attempted to storm the compound, prompting security forces to deploy water cannons and fire rounds of tear gas. Clashes quickly intensified as demonstrators hurled bottles, rocks, and flares at riot police.

Amid the chaos, one group of rioters ignited a five-story building in the Kwitang neighborhood of central Jakarta, leaving several people trapped inside. Witnesses reported that some students paused their protest to assist soldiers and residents in rescuing those caught in the blaze.

The protests were further inflamed by reports that a delivery rider had been allegedly run over by a police armored vehicle during earlier clashes with students over lawmakers’ allowances.

Elsewhere, demonstrators destroyed traffic signs, blocked major roads, and brought traffic to a standstill. Several government offices were vandalized, while police trucks, patrol cars, and other vehicles were attacked and set ablaze. The unrest has also sparked looting in some areas, raising fears of a broader breakdown in order if tensions are not defused soon.

The protests highlight deepening frustration among Indonesians over economic hardships, political grievances, and anger toward perceived government excesses. Authorities have yet to announce new measures to address the escalating crisis.