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| Image: Flickr User - Karl-Ludwig Poggemann |
By Prashanth Parameswaran
Jakarta records a notable first in its intensified crackdown against ISIS-linked militants.
Indonesia sentenced seven men linked to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on Tuesday, marking the first time the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country has sent anyone to prison for associations with the terror group.
Indonesia has been looking to crack down on ISIS since a bomb and gun attack in the capital Jakarta last month killed eight, including the four attackers themselves (See: “Islamic State Attack in Indonesia? A Look at the 2016 Jakarta Bombings”). The incident was the first ISIS attack in Southeast Asia and the first militant attack to hit Indonesia since twin hotel bombings in 2009 carried out by the Southeast Asian offshoot of Al-Qaeda, Jemaah Islamiyah.
On Tuesday, the West Jakarta District Court sentenced four men to between three and four years in prison for traveling to Syria to join ISIS, while two others received similar sentences for aiding them. The seventh received a five year sentence for spreading ISIS propaganda.
Read the full story at The Diplomat