APD | 3 terrorists killed, 2 arrested in Indonesia’s C. Sulawesi province security operation

By APD writer Aditya Nugraha

JAKARTA, March 22 (APD) – Indonesia’s operation to hunt down members of Islamic State (IS)-linked homegrown terrorist group killed 3 terrorists and arrested 2 others in a fresh shootout in Central Sulawesi province’s regency of Parigi Moutong, head of provincial police said on Friday.

Military troops and police serving in Tinombala operation in the province continue the hunt remaining members of East Indonesia Mujahidin (MIT) who now are hiding in the jungle around the regency’s mountains, Head of Central Sulawesi Province Headquarters Lukman Wahyu Hariyanto said.

The shootout with the MIT members took place on Thursday afternoon in the regency’s district of Sausu, he added.

“The killed terrorists were identified as Andi Muhammad from Makassar, Jaka Ramadhan from Banten and Alhaji Kaliki from Ambon,” he said, but reluctant to go into details of the terrorists arrested alive in the shootout location.

With the loss of 5 members in the shootout, Lukman said that capability of the homegrown terrorist group has apparently decreased.

“We estimated 9 are still left remaining in the organization at present,” he said in the province’s capital of Palu. 

The operation has killed MIT leader in June 2016, shortly after it was formed.

MIT, which has stated its allegiance to IS, aims to set up an Islamic state in Indonesia. It also trained, organized the sending of domestic radicals eager to join IS in Syria.

In doing so, the organization actively launched attacks against police, public and government facilities in the province. Part of terrorist attacks in Indonesia were also linked with MIT.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)