Indonesian authorities have arrested seven suspects allegedly planning an attack on Pope Francis during his recent visit to the country.
On September 2 and 3, Indonesian police conducted a series of arrests in multiple locations across Indonesia. The suspects were apprehended by Detachment-88, Indonesia's national counterterrorism squad, in cities such as Jakarta, Bogor, Bekasi, and provinces including West Sumatra and Bangka Belitung Islands.
Breitbart reported that the detained individuals, identified only by their initials — HFP, LB, DF, FA, HS, ER, and RS — are accused of plotting an Islamic terrorist attack aimed at Pope Francis.
Each suspect was arrested following the coordination of multiple law enforcement bodies and surveillance operations.
Colonel Aswin Siregar, a spokesman for Detachment-88, expressed that the linkage or collaboration among the suspects remains unclear.
"It is not yet clear if the seven suspects know each other or are members of the same terror cell," stated Siregar. His team acted on tip-offs from the public, showcasing a community and police collaborative effort in thwarting potential terror attacks.
"We have a mechanism to monitor and filter. We had tip-off information from members of the public," Siregar explained, highlighting the community's role in security operations.
This proactive approach helped police intercept the threats that were communicated through social media platforms.
Among the suspects, some had publicly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, a notorious terrorist organization. Col. Siregar detailed further, "Legal action has been taken against the seven individuals who made threats in the form of propaganda or terror threats via social media in response to the pope’s arrival."
The group had even threatened to set fire to various locations, adding a layer of complexity to the security forces' response.
Terror-related paraphernalia including bows and arrows, a drone, and ISIS leaflets were found during the house searches. This chilling discovery underscores the tangible threat level posed by the suspects and hints at the preparations underway before their apprehension.
One of the individuals arrested has links to an extremist group responsible for a past attack on Wiranto, Indonesia’s former chief security minister, in 2019.
This connection to a prior violent incident provides additional context to the severity of the threats posed by these individuals.
Dissent not only came in the form of planned violence but also through verbal disapproval. Pope Francis's visit to Jakarta's Istiqlal mosque brought discontent among some locals, compounded by directives to television stations to adjust the broadcast of the Islamic call to prayer during the visit. This request, intended to respect the Pope's itinerary, was met with resistance and dissatisfaction in certain quarters.
Pope Francis himself, while addressing the issue of terrorism in 2017, stated, "Christian terrorism does not exist, Jewish terrorism does not exist, and Muslim terrorism does not exist.
They do not exist." His statement underscores the view that terrorism is not confined to any single culture or religion but is a distorted application of belief.
After the visit to Indonesia, Pope Francis safely departed on Friday. He continued his 12-day trip to visit other Southeast Asian nations including Papua New Guinea, East Timor, and Singapore. His journey aims to foster dialogue and peace among diverse religious and cultural groups across the region.