The five suspects are identified as FW alias YT, LM (23), PP alias BBMS (37), MSPO (18), and JJS alias BS (19).
“For the veteran suspect arrested first, the network is linked to ISIS or Ansharut Daulah,” Densus 88 Spokesperson Adjunct Senior Commissioner Mayndra Eka Wardhana said in Jakarta on Tuesday.
Mayndra did not reveal which suspect is tied to ISIS but noted that the individual is a repeat offender.
“He already served a prison term. After release, he tried recruiting several children again,” he said.
The arrest of this veteran led Densus 88 to uncover the broader network and capture the four other suspects.
Mayndra explained that the suspects spread propaganda digitally, including via social media and online games.
On mainstream social media platforms, they lure children with fantasy-themed content. In online games, suspects first communicate with children through in-game chat, then add them to encrypted messaging groups.
“Initially, they do not introduce terrorist ideology directly. Children are first attracted, then guided into smaller, private groups managed by the admin, where indoctrination occurs,” he said.
Mayndra emphasized that Densus 88 conducts both ideological and physical preventive measures, targeting potential attacks on national critical infrastructure.
The unit previously thwarted a suspect planning an attack on Indonesia’s parliament building.
“This preventive action protects vital national sites, the public, and also the children being recruited,” he added.
Indonesia has been a target of terrorist attacks since 2000, and the spread of radicalism and terrorism continues to threaten the country today.
On January 14, 2016, ISIS supporters in Indonesia carried out a suicide bombing and shooting attack in Jakarta, killing eight people, including three innocent civilians. In May 2018, a church in the East Java city of Surabaya was also attacked.
These incidents add to a long list of deadly assaults by terrorist cells in Indonesia.
Between 2000 and 2012, more than a dozen attacks struck the capital, including the Australian embassy bombing on September 9, 2004, and the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotel bombings on July 17, 2009.
One of the most effective ways to break Indonesia’s cycle of radicalism and terrorism is to empower women, who can play a crucial role in protecting children from being misled by terrorist recruiters.
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Translator: Nadia PR, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: M Razi Rahman
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