In the past, as revealed in such deadly incidents as the Bali and JW Marriott Hotel bombings, the perpetrators targeted symbols of the Western World, political analyst of the Jenderal Soedirman University (Unsoed) Luthfi Makhasin said here Tuesday.
"Currently, they are targeting the police because they regard the police, especially Densus 88 (Indonesia's National Police's Counterterrorism Squad) as the representative of the symbol of the 'Thogut' state," he argued.
The perpetrators did not target the Indonesian military (TNI) because the acts of terrorism were related to issues of domestic security which, according to laws and regulations, are handled by the police, he said.
In connection with the Medan blast on November 13, the National Police spokesman, Brigadier General Dedi Prasetyo, had confirmed earlier that the Densus 88 team had, until now, taken 46 suspects into arrest.
"A total of 46 suspects were arrested. I need to disclose that they are linked to the Y-led Jamaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD)," Prasetyo revealed.
Some 23 of the 46 suspects belong to the North Sumatra-Aceh network, with four of them surrendering to the police, he confirmed.
"Four people surrendered, while the police took firm measures against two others since they attempted to resist arrest by using a sharp weapon and airsoft gun resulting in injuries to a member of Densus 88," he revealed.
Four other suspects were arrested in Banten, three in Jakarta, nine in Central Java, six in West Java, and one suspect in East Kalimantan.
The Densus 88 squad personnel shot dead two suspected terrorists during a raid at the Kota Datar area, Hamparan Perak Sub-district, Deli Serdang District, on November 16, North Sumatra Police Chief Inspector General Agus Andrianto stated.
The two suspects were gunned down when they attacked the Densus 88 and local police personnel to evade arrest, he remarked. (INE)
