Jakarta (AsiaNews) - It has yet to make any startling
conquests in the Asian nation, but the Indonesian section of the Islamic State (formerly
ISIS, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) has already started mass
recruitment - as
recently reported- in over 16 provinces of the archipelago. In
particular, Aceh, the westernmost and majority Muslim area, is turning into a
sort of haven for Sunni extremists, with the active brainwashing and
indoctrination, especially of young people. According to a survey published in
the local Serambi newspaper, in at least 21 districts of Aceh there is a
massive infiltration of militants, as thousands took the oath of allegiance to
the head of the Caliphate, the fundamentalist leader Abu Bakar Al-Baghdadi.
Last week, a man identified as Abu Jundullah said to be the
head of the Islamist movement in Aceh; the foundation of the group dates back
to the 1st January 2014, as the leader says "we are not the Indonesian
branch of IS, but act directly under the leadership of Al-Baghdadi and we are
all inhabitants of Aceh".
For the Indonesian Islamic leader Jundullah the presence of
an Islamic State is explained by the "great work" done in Syria and
Iraq; most affiliates in Aceh are jihadist veterans from the wars in
Afghanistan and violent inter-religious conflict in Ambon and Moro, the
Moluccas, 1999-2002.
He adds that the goal is to transform all districts of Aceh
into "chapters" of the Islamic state "before 2015" and work
has already begun with propaganda campaigns in the countryside.
At the same time the number of Muslim religious leaders in
Aceh, who condemn the presence of affiliates of IS in the province is growing; dozens
of ulema and experts in Islamic law preach against the seizure of power by the
Islamists. Jakarta is also stepping up its warnings with the head of
counter-terrorism - Gen. Ansyaad Mbai - confirming the "fertile
ground" found by the international jihadist movement in some provinces of
the country, with particular attention to recruiting.
In recent days, special units carried out a series of raids
in the district of Ngawi, in the province of East Java, detaining two suspects;
they also seized guns, ISIS flags and a book praising the jihad.
Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, is increasingly
the scene of attacks or episodes of intolerance towards minorities, whether
they are Christians, Ahmadi Muslims or other faiths. In the province of Aceh -
the only one in the Archipelago to apply Islamic law (sharia) - following a
peace agreement between the central government and the Free Aceh Movement
(GAM), and in many other areas (such as Bekasi and Bogor in West Java) the version
of Islam practiced by citizens is becoming more radical and extreme.
