Jakarta, Jubi – The National Police has ensured that 11 suspected terrorists arrested by the Densus 88 counterterrorism squad in Merauke Regency, Papua in late May are linked to the Villa Mutiara Makassar terrorist group in South Sulawesi, who was responsible for the suicide bombing at the Makassar Cathedral in March this year.
The Makassar terrorist group are members of Jamaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD), an extremist group blamed for series of attacks including the 2018 church bombing in East Java’s Surabaya City and the 2019 church bombing in the Philippines committed by a married Indonesian couple.
“Yes, they are related. The suspected terrorists detained in Merauke are the extension of the Makassar terrorist network,” head of the Police’s Public Information Bureau Brig. Gen. Rusdi Hartono said on Monday, June 7, 2021, as quoted by CNN Indonesia.
According to Hartono, the suspected terrorists moved to Merauke after seeing the Densus 88 actively arresting terrorists in Makassar. They planned to do terrorism acts outside Makassar, including heading to Merauke.
National Police spokesperson Insp. Gen. Argo Yuwono said that Densus 88 suspected the alleged Merauke terrorists would bomb the church and Merauke Police headquarters.
Yuwono said the suspected terrorists had taken an oath of allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group. He explained that these people joined a Whatsapp and Telegram group loaded with extremist content.
Editor : Edi Faisol
