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Wife, mother and suicide bomber
Our current research about children’s involvement in radicalization and terrorist acts confirms patterns related to the involvement of women, as mothers, in the radicalization of their children.
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Wreckage of the homes of a woman who blew herself up and her neighbours in Sibolga, North Sumatra on March 16. (Antara/Irsan Mulyadi)
I
n an isolated village in Sibolga, North Sumatra, early on March 13, a woman named Solimah decided to blow herself up with her infant after hours of negotiation with the police.
The negotiations were deadlocked although Husain — also known as Abu Hamzah, Solimah’s husband — was trying to persuade his wife, who was determined to conduct the suicide bombing, to surrender peacefully.
A day after, following Husain’s interrogation, counterterrorism force Densus 88 arrested several suspects in the province in a case related to a terrorist network. One was a woman believed to be Husain’s second wife and accomplice in his bombings plan.
According to interviews with a local cleric, Husain returned to Sibolga last year from somewhere in Java. His relatives said he was mostly secretive. The cleric also said previously Solimah was known to wear a burqa but when they returned, Solimah was wearing a simple hijab, raising questions whether she was the same woman. Husain worked as a repairman, helping residents with electrical repairs. However, he and his wife rarely socialized with the community and he never attended Friday prayers at the neighborhood mosque.
According to the cleric who helped in the negotiation process between Solimah and the police, residents knew Husain adhered to a different understanding of Islam but did not perceive him to be someone who was part of a terrorist group.
Husain’s relatives at the scene of the incident included his uncle Naim, who was seriously injured by a bomb thrown by Husain’s wife when the police and Naim searched Husain’s house.
Raising concerns about the child’s safety, the local cleric attempted to persuade Husain’s wife and her 2-year-old son to surrender.
