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s authorities prepare to secure Christmas and New Year celebrations in Central Java, the province’s top cop is telling his officers to shoot to kill any terrorists who endanger people.

Central Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Didiek Sutomo Triwidodo issued the order on Friday morning during a show of force with troops from the Diponegoro Military District IV at Kota Barat Square in Surakarta (Solo), Central Java.

Didiek said that the orders to shoot to kill without warning shots did not violate any of the police’s standard operating procedures, especially given the several attacks on officers in Surakarta earlier this year.

“We cannot lose focus on terrorism, not only in Solo, but also in the whole region of Central Java,” Didiek said.

While the order would be in force throughout the province, officers would also give special attention to regions with a history of terrorist attacks or of harboring terrorists, such as Surakarta, the police chief said.

The Central Java Police will deploy more than 12,600 officers to secure Christmas and New Year celebrations in the province, Didiek said. The figure excludes 600 other officers on standby.

In Surakarta, the provincial capital, 2,700 personnel will be deployed to secure 26 churches in the city, among other areas, for the holidays. The personnel comprise police officers, Indonesian Military (TNI) troops, and community organizations.

Surakarta Mayor FX Hadi Rudyatmo said that the administration had been working with members of the community to keep the peace in Surakarta over Christmas. “I urge the people of Solo to keep things conducive for our diverse society,” he said.

Greater Solo, which covers Surakarta and the neighboring regencies of Surakarta, Boyolali, Sukoharjo, Karanganyar, Wonogiri, Sragen and Klaten, has been the site of several terrorist attacks in the past.

On Sept. 25, 2011, a suicide bomber injured dozens of people at the Bethel Injil Sepenuh Church in Kepunton, while in August this year, three police posts were attacked within two weeks.

The first attack was on Aug. 16 in Serengan, Surakarta, when two officers were injured. The second attack was on Aug. 19 in Gladak while the third attack, in which one officer was killed, occurred on Aug. 30 in Singosaren.