INDONESIA: Police Arrest Terror Suspect Targeting Places of Worship in East Java

Posted by Asia Views | Aug 2, 2024 | 0 |

JakartaPost-Aug 1

The police arrested an alleged terrorist in Batu, East Java on Wednesday evening, with the suspect allegedly planning to launch a bombing in houses of worship. The National Police’s Densus 88 counterterrorism squad arrested the suspect, identified as a 19-year-old male with the initials HOK, at around 7:15 p.m. Investigators suspect that he is affiliated with the Daulah Islamiyah group that is linked to the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organization. “From our investigation, we believe the suspect was planning to launch a suicide bombing attack against a house of worship,” National Police spokesperson Brig. Gen. Trunoyudo Wisnu Andiko said in a statement on Thursday, but he stopped short of mentioning which place of worship or the location of the suspect’s target. Aside from HOK, Densus 88 personnel also arrested several other people. After arresting the suspect, a joint team of Densus 88 and East Java Police conducted a search at a rental house in Batu on Thursday. “The house was rented for two years. The suspect has only lived in it for 1.5 years,” Trunoyudo said. During the search, investigators seized several pieces of evidence, including a bottle of liquid explosive, a slingshot and a jar of ball bearings. The police charged HOK with violating the 2018 Terrorism Law that carries a maximum punishment of life imprisonment. The police have arrested several terror suspects in the country in recent years. In January, Densus 88 personnel arrested at least 10 suspects in Central Java in a series of operations to secure the general election in February as well as the upcoming simultaneous regional elections in November. Recently, senior members of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), a militant network blamed for the fatal 2002 Bali bombing, announced the group’s disbandment. In a video statement issued on June 30, whose authenticity was confirmed by the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC), JI leaders confirmed their commitment to the Indonesian state and law.

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EXTRICATING NDONESIAN CHILDREN FROM ISIS INFLUENCE ABROAD

Indonesia urgently needs to revisit the possibility of repatriating the neediest of its young citizens stranded abroad, whose families had earlier joined ISIS. Most of these children are in camps in northern Syria but there are also small numbers in the Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq. “Extricating Indonesian Children from ISIS Influence Abroad”, the latest report from the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) argues that the government could begin by bringing back small groups of unaccompanied children under ten years of age, who pose minimal security risk and are most vulnerable to deteriorating conditions in the camps.“The problem is that health and security conditions are worsening by the day in the Syrian camps, and the children are growing older,” says Dyah Kartika, IPAC analyst. “They need access to schools, a nurturing environment, and medical attention. If the government waits too long, the children will be further exposed to ISIS ideology.” The new report examines a 2019 list of Indonesians in camps and prisons run by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Indonesian government has been trying to verify their citizenship, but with pseudonyms, misspellings and bad transliterations, it is a daunting task. At the time the data was collected, between March and June 2019, there were 555 Indonesians in SDF camps and prisons, including 367 children. Among the children, approximately 277 were under the age of ten and 34 were unaccompanied. In June 2021, there are fewer than ten children who are both unaccompanied and under the age of ten that could be prioritized for return. Bringing back children of ISIS families is no easy task. The report analyses the main challenges faced by the Indonesian government. These include definitional issues, bureaucratic competition, the difficulty of verifying nationality, evaluating the toll of exposure to conflict, assessing security risk, and finding relatives or others willing to provide care once the children are returned. In addition, COVID has meant stringent restrictions on travel, placing further obstacles in the way of repatriation. There are several models for rehabilitation of children exposed to violent extremism in Indonesia that could be modified to accommodate the needs of children repatriated from abroad. The report examines these models and argues that the government does not need to have every detail of rehabilitation programs in place before it starts extricating children from ISIS influence. It can start by bringing back the most vulnerable children and then modify programs as needed.

“It’s important that the government see these children as victims” says Dyah. “They deserve a chance to be children again.”

INDONESIA: Police Arrest Terror Suspect Targeting Places of Worship in East Java

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