Tag Archives: indonesia

Analysis: US terror designations target Islamic State’s Southeast Asian network

On Aug. 24, the US Treasury Department designated three Islamic State recruiters as terrorists. The trio appeared in a June 2016 beheading video that was used to recruit fighters from Southeast Asia. The new designation is the latest in a series of moves taken by the US government to target the Islamic State’s global network with financial sanctions and other measures.


Authorities say ISIS-linked family conducted suicide bombings at Indonesian churches

According to authorities, an ISIS-linked family carried out suicide bombings at three churches in the Indonesian city of Surabaya earlier today. The bombings came just days after other ISIS-affiliated militants conducted a prison riot south of Jakarta. ISIS has long targeted Christians, among many others. The group previously ruled that suicide attacks aimed at churches were an acceptable way to attain “closeness to Allah.”



Treasury sanctions ISIS facilitator based in the Philippines

The US government has designated Myrna Mabanza, an Islamic State facilitator based in the Philippines, as a terrorist. The Treasury Department identifies Mabanza as a woman in her mid-20s who has worked with some of the Islamic State’s most senior personnel in Southeast Asia and has also served as an “intermediary” to jihadists in Syria.







Indonesia

Ilham Syafii, a suspected terrorist linked to the Poso-based group headed by Santoso, was killed in shootout with police in South Sulawesi. Police said they have convinced a group of Islamic State supporters to cancel a gathering organized by the Jamaah Ansharut Tauhid and slated for Jan. 11 in Semarang, East Java. In December, Malaysian […]


Indonesia

The US Embassy issued a warning about a security threat to US-linked banks and hotels in Surabaya. Indonesia’s Supreme Court reversed its earlier conviction of Saudi citizen Al Khelaiw Ali Abdullah, who had been found guilty of helping finance the twin terrorist attacks in 2010 on the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott hotels in Jakarta. The […]


Indonesia

Banser, the security branch of Nahdlatul Ulama, the country’s largest Muslim organization, has established a special unit, Densus 99 Asmaul Husna, to monitor the activities of the Islamic State in Indonesia. The head of Banser said extremist activity had been detected in Lamongan, Banyuwangi, Malang, and Kediri in East Java. President Widodo has asked Nahdlatul […]


Indonesia

Police arrested six people yesterday at the airport in Jakarta, including a couple and their child, as they attempted to fly to the Middle East to join the Islamic State. Following their arrest, counterterrorism police arrested the man who recruited them, identified as M.A., in a house in Cibubur, East Jakarta. The counterterrorism chief has […]


Indonesia

Indonesian editor who published anti-ISIS cartoon is summoned under blasphemy law


Indonesia

The new head of Indonesia’s counterterrorism agency warned that the number of Indonesians joining the Islamic State has more than tripled since June, and said the total number of Indonesians who have joined the group in Iraq and Syria is about 514. The Jakarta Post’s chief editor was named a suspect in a blasphemy case […]


Indonesia

Indonesian authorities denied media reports that 350 members of the al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist group are being released from prison, and said in any event there are only about 274 terrorist inmates. Malaysia’s counterterrorism police chief said the releases will take place over the next two years. A human rights group warned that the […]



Indonesia

Jakarta governor calls for hardline group, Islamic Defenders Front, to be disbanded



Indonesia

Police arrested 20 members of the hardline Islam Defenders Front (FPI) after more than 10 police officers were wounded during a violent FPI protest in Jakarta. Among those arrested was Irwan, an FPI member who organized the event, which protested against an incoming deputy governor because he is Christian and Chinese. A rights group called […]


Indonesia

Detachment 88 counterterrorism forces have arrested four ethnic Uighurs in the Poso district of Sulewesi who had entered the country with fake passports and are suspected of links to the Islamic State. The suspects were reportedly trying to meet with Santoso, the head of the Eastern Indonesia Mujahideen. Militants in Santoso’s group are thought to […]




Indonesia

The Detachment 88 counterterrorism squad arrested Jemaah Anshorut Tauhid leader Afif Abdul Majid, who was added to the US’ global terrorist list in 2013. Majid, who recently returned from Syria, has pledged support to the Islamic State, along with jailed al Qaeda-linked cleric Abu Bakar Ba’asyir. Although the government reportedly banned IS ideology within the […]


Australia

MH370: New evidence of cockpit tampering as investigation into missing plane continues



Indonesia

Sunni clerics at a mosque in West Java denounced Shiites as heretical and vowed to take any measures to prevent the spread of Shiite teachings. A video was posted on jihadist forums featuring wanted terrorist leader Abu Warda Santoso, the head of the Mujahidin Indonesia Timur (East Indonesian Mujahideen), who incited Muslims to kill members […]



Indonesia

Indonesia’s Islamist parties surprise with strong showing in election


Indonesia

Islamists in Jakarta and Bekasi recently demonstrated in support of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham. Aceh, a province with 5 million inhabitants, has adopted a bylaw requiring both Muslims and non-Muslims to abide by sharia; sharia authorities are empowered to make arrests; confiscate property; detain suspects for 30 days prior to trial; […]