Introduction
The remaining nine members of the East Indonesia Mujahidin (MIT) continue to engage in guerrilla tactics in the forests of Poso and Parigi Moutong Regencies, Central Sulawesi. According to the Commander of Korem (Military Regional Command) 132/Tadulako, Central Sulawesi, Brigadier General Farid Makruf, one of the terrorists was shot while two others are currently sick. BG Farid is also the deputy chief of the Madago Raya Task Force.
“I have received intelligence that Ali Kalora was shot in an operation by the military and police, while the sick were Ahmad Gazali aka Ahmad Panjang and Rukli.”
Despite, these three members together with Suhardin aka Hasan Pranata desiring to surrender, slightly less than half of the group, the group has yet to do so. This is because these four members were prevented from surrendering by a fellow member, Qatar.
“Qatar aka Anas aka Farel is the leader of the East Indonesia Mujahidin terrorist group. He has threatened members of this group who desire to surrender. This led to the members fearing to do so,” explained BG Farid.
MIT Currently Split into Two Factions
BG Farid added that MIT has now split into two factions, one of which is led by Qatar. Members in this faction consists of 1) Abu Alim aka Ambo, 2) Nae aka Galuh, 3) Askas aka Jadi aka Pak Guru, and 4) Jaka aka Ramadan aka Ikrima aka Rama.
“This faction entails members who are not from Poso. They hailed from Bima, West Nusa Tenggara, Makassar, South Sulawesi and Banten, Jakarta,” shared BG Farid.
The second faction, led by Ali Kalora, consists of Suhardin aka Hasan Pranata, Ahmad Gazali aka Ahmad Panjang, and Rukli. Notably, members of this faction originated from Poso.
“This Poso group should have surrendered on March 22, 2021. But they became frightened after being threatened by Qatar,” said BG Farid.
Interestingly, the Head of Public Relations of the Central Sulawesi Regional Police, Commissioner Didik Supranoto, stated that the police had not received such information. Despite the lack of information, the police will continue to appeal for their surrender while guaranteeing their safety.
“Surrendering does not mean escaping punishment. They will still be punished according to relevant laws. We are a country ruled by law,” said Commissioner Didik. Nevertheless, “the team remains focused on actively pursuing these terrorists.”
Ali Kalora’s faction had real reasons to be frightened as the faction led by Qatar is violent and dangerous. This was evident from the recent attack on May 11, 2021. Qatar’s faction was responsible for killing four farmers in Kalemago Village, East Lore District, Poso Regency.
A witness to this attack recognized Qatar as one of the perpetrators from photos distributed by the Madago Raya Task Force. This task force is tasked to pursue terrorist groups in Poso.
Joint Police-Military Task Force: Hunting MIT Since 2016
The Operation Tinombala Task Force was formed in 2016 to pursue and arrest MIT members who was then led by Santoso aka Abu Wardah. This task force, named after a mountain in Central Sulawesi, comprised of both police and military personnel. The task force had immediate impact with the killing of Santoso on July 18, 2016. MIT’s leadership was subsequently transferred to Ali Kalora sparking the continuation of Operation Tinombala to pursue the remaining 11 MIT members.
Operation Tinombala has been extended numerous times due to the difficulty in apprehending this group. In 2020 alone, there were four extensions: 1) January 1 to March 2020, 2) March 31 to June 28, 2020, 3) June 29 to September 20, 2020, and 4) October 1 to December, 31, 2020.
Criticisms towards the Operation Tinombala Task Force grew due to their limited success in apprehending the remaining group members despite the killing of Santoso, as evident from the numerous extensions of this operation. The task force attributed their limited success to the challenging terrain that offers vast cover to these terrorists. Not only did they have to cover a wide, heavily forested area but the terrain was particularly challenging; hilly and with many canyons and valleys. Criticisms significantly increased over their mishandling of a civilian, Qidam Alfarizqi Mofance, suspected of terrorism in April 2020. Unfortunately, Qidam was suspected to have been tortured before being shot dead by the task force personnel.
After a post-incident evaluation of the shooting, the police disbanded the task force and established the Madago Raya Task Force, another police-military operation.
Madago Raya Task Force: Ensuring Peace Prevails in Poso
The Madago Raya Task Force was formed to continue the pursuit and capture of the remaining MIT members. In Poso, Madago means “kind and close to the people.” Apart from a name change, there is no difference between the Operation Tinombala Task Force and the Madago Raya Task Force. Unfortunately, issues such as information sharing between the police and military are unresolved as highlighted from uncertainty about Ali Kalora’s faction intending to surrender.
The Madago Raya Task Force was initially meant to operate from January 2021 to March 2021. It has, however, been extended indefinitely until the apprehension of MIT and its networks. Despite the current circumstances of MIT, it is likely the operation will not stop in the near future. This may change with the capture of Qatar.
Led by Central Sulawesi Police Chief, Inspector General Abdul Rakham Baso, and assisted by BG Farid, this task force comprises of three teams, namely, the Pursuit Team, the Containment Team and the Preventive Action Team.
The Pursuit Team comprising special forces of the police and TNI will locate, pursue and terrorist hiding in forests, dead or alive. The Containment Team contains special forces personnel tasked to guard the entrances and exits of forests to prevent the escape of terrorists into the surrounding villages. The Preventive Action Team comprises of Police and TNI personnel to socialize with the public, both in formal and informal meetings. This is to facilitate the community to share information about terrorist groups and to report any sightings of terrorists.
“The goal is that the public will no longer be troubled by terrorist activities,” stated Police Commissioner Didik. The police hoped that this joint task force will be successful in capturing these terrorists, so that peace in the community can prevail.
