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Splinter terrorist cells may target elections: BNPT
Dozens of terrorist cells could attempt to launch their attacks in the lead-up to the elections next year, the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) has warned
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ozens of terrorist cells could attempt to launch their attacks in the lead-up to the elections next year, the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) has warned.
BNPT head Ansyaad Mbai said on Thursday that the attacks would be made to disrupt the elections which the terrorists deem as ungodly processes. 'Their biggest enemy is democracy and elections are the core of the democratic system. They see democracy as a Western, infidel product that has to be destroyed,' he said during a discussion.
Ansyaad cited two terrorist attacks linked to elections in the past. On July 17, 2009, terrorists linked to al-Qaeda offshoot, Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), launched suicide bombings at the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta, killing seven people and seriously injuring dozens.
'The bombings occurred right after the 2009 presidential election. They were dismayed by the election result, they hate democracy,' he said. In the 2009 election, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono won his second term in office after garnering 60.8 percent of the vote.
Only hours after the bombings, the President announced that a terrorist cell had used photographs of him for target practice.
'The issue [of the President as a target] became an issue of national debate. But, I can assure that it was true,' Ansyaad said.
The second attack occurred on Nov. 2012, when a man linked to Jamaah Ansharut Tauhid (JAT) threw a pipe bomb at South Sulawesi Governor Syahrul Yasin Limpo at the provincial capital of Makassar. The device, packed with nails, failed to explode.
The attack came only two months prior to the gubernatorial election, in which Syahrul was reelected.
Ansyaad said that the terrorists, who had the capacity to attack, all originated from three major groups: JI, JAT and the Indonesian Islamic State (NII). 'These major groups have transformed into dozens of terrorist cells. It seems like they are independent cells, but the truth is that they work within the same network, ideology and command,' he said.
Meanwhile, the BNPT are concerned about the possible influx of dozens of Indonesian militants currently fighting in the civil war in Syria. The number of Indonesian fighters in Syria has led to fears that they will resort to terrorism when they return home.
