REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Arresting terrorist group leader Santoso was a difficult task as he is believed to be hiding in the vast forest of Poso, Central Sulawesi Province, National Police Chief General Badrodin Haiti stated here on Tuesday (26/5).
"The forest is huge. Santoso and Basri are our main targets. We will continue looking for them," General Haiti affirmed.
Santoso is believed to be the leader of the East Indonesia Mujahideen terrorist group (MIT), while Basri, alias Bagong, was Santoso's partner.
Basri, convicted in terrorism cases in Poso in 2015, managed to flee from the Ampana Class II Penitentiary of Central Sulawesi in April 2013.
Basri, who was granted permission to visit his ailing wife, seized the opportunity to escape from imprisonment.
Recently, National Police's anti-terror squad Densus 88, in cooperation with Central Sulawesi and South Sulawesi Police, managed to arrest nine suspected members of the MIT group.
Two of the suspects died during a standoff with the law enforcers.
"The seven alive are AQ, AZ, S, F, AI, H, and N. DNA test for identification is being conducted on the bodies of the two," Spokesperson of the National Police Brigadier General Agus Rianto revealed.
AQ, arrested on Friday (May 22), was believed to be a courier delivering ammunition to the MIT group.
"During AQ's arrest, we confiscated 670 rounds of 5.56mm caliber, three 7.52mm rounds, and two cellphones," Rianto stated.
On Sunday (May 24), a shootout took place in Gayatri Village, Poso District, Central Sulawesi Province, where two of the suspected terrorists died in a gun fight with the officers.
On the same day, five other suspects: AZ, S, F, AI, and H, were arrested in Makassar, South Sulawesi. They were believed to be the couriers and had joined a MIT military exercise.
Meanwhile, on Monday (May 25) morning, a suspected terrorist, with the initial N, was arrested in Luwuk District, Central Sulawesi.
N was believed to be a courier and a logistical assistance provider for the MIT.
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