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View all search resultsIndonesian Military forms ‘super elite unit’ to crack down on terrorism
The recent establishment of a "super elite" Indonesian Military unit allows military involvement in counterterrorism, which has traditionally been the domain of the National Police, raising concerns among human rights groups over potential restrictions to civil liberties.
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Indonesian Military (TNI) commander Air Chief Marshall Hadi Tjahjanto (front center), Army chief of staff Gen. Andika Perkasa (second left), Navy chief of staff Admiral Siwi Suka Adji (second right) and Air Force chief of staff Air Chief Marshall Yuyu Sutisna (right) chat with Special Operations Command (Koopssus) commander Brig. Gen. Rochadi (left) during the inauguration of Koopssus at the TNI headquarters in Cilangkap, Jakarta, on Tuesday. (ANTARA FOTO/Sigid Kurniawan)
T
he Indonesian Military (TNI) is expected to play a bigger role in the country's war on terror with the establishment of a "super elite unit" for deploying in national security emergencies, including terror attacks.
The newly established Special Operations Command (Koopssus) comprises 400 personnel from the crème de la crème of the military's special forces: the 81 Special Detachment (Gultor) of the Army’s Special Forces (Kopassus), the Jalamangkara Detachment (Denjaka) of the Navy’s Marine Corps, and the Bravo 90 Detachment (Denbravo) of the Air Force’s Special Forces Corps (Korpaskhas).
The Koopssus is under the command of Brig. Gen. Rochadi, who was appointed to the new role from his previous position as the director of the TNI’s Strategic Intelligence Agency (BAIS).
Expected to be highly agile, the Koopssus is to conduct special operations in Indonesia and abroad to protect national security interests.
TNI chief Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto said the super elite unit had three counterterrorism functions – deterrence, action and recovery – and that the Koopssus' primary role was to provide surveillance in its deterrence function.
“About 80 percent of [the unit's] operations will be in surveillance,” Hadi said on Tuesday during the unit’s inauguration ceremony at TNI headquarters.
He added that 100 Koopssus personnel could be deployed to fight terrorist groups if needed, and stressed that the TNI would coordinate with the National Police and the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) on its missions.
