Indonesia police brace for hardline Islamic protest

Leader of hardline Muslim group Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) Rizieq Shihab walks to meet the call of the Criminal Investigation Police during an investigation of Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahja Purnama in Jakarta, Indonesia, November 3, 2016 Antara Foto/Puspa Perwitasari/via REUTERS

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Truckloads of soldiers and police took the streets of Jakarta on Friday, securing shopping malls and business areas, as residents in the Indonesian capital braced for a large-scale protest planned by hardline Muslim groups.

Thousands of protesters, led by the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), are expected to demand the resignation of the Jakarta governor, a Christian and the first ethnic Chinese in the job, over claims that he insulted the Koran.