Bahrun Naim used to run a modest internet café in the Indonesian city of Solo only 7 years ago. On Thursday, the Indonesian police identified him as the ISIS behind the Jakarta attacks. The terrorist attacks were claimed immediately by the IS group.
According to the police reports, Bahrun Naim is the person who planned and executed from the city of Raqqa in Syria. Raqqa is the de facto capital of the Islamic State. Naim had been arrested in 2011 for possessing arms. He was sent to jail for 3 years from where he came out as an important player in the networks established by militants. These networks have sprouted in many parts of Indonesia especially Java and Solo. Since the attacks, there were unconfirmed news regarding ISIS behind Jakarta attacks.
This has now been confirmed by the tourist group itself as well as the police. Naim went to Syria a year ago to fight for the Islamic State at the frontlines. Police believes that he was deeply involved in perpetrating the attacks on Thursday.
Besides confirming ISIS behind Jakarta attacks, the police also reported that five of the attackers as well as two civilians lost their lives in an attack which is seen as the first IS strike in Indonesia. The country boats the largest Muslim population in the whole world and it is alleged that the IS group wants to establish a beachhead here that will serve the caliphate.
Besides claiming the hands of ISIS behind Jakarta attacks, police also said that they had been warning to such an attack for weeks. Since the attacks on Paris in November last year, the militant form Indonesia published a blog in which he told his followers that it was very easy to wage jihad on Indonesian cities from the confines of the equatorial jungles.
Right after the Paris attacks, Naim was contacted by Reuters. He told them that his group had enough strength on Indonesia to carry out a spectacular attack. He had implied that he was only waiting for the trigger. Naim could not be contacted after Thursday’s attacks; however, the hand of ISIS behind Jakarta attacks was confirmed.
Intelligence agencies have revealed that they had been keeping tabs on social network conversations that implied that an attack in Indonesia was imminent. A security advisor based in Jakarta said that chatter between militants had become more intense and organized during the past few days which hinted for the first time that an attack was in the offing.
Regular monitoring of mobile networks had allowed the Indonesian police to identify dozens of people across Java who count mount attacks over New Year or Christmas. During these raids, the police also found jihad manuals, suicide vests and materials for bomb making.
The arrested militants were allegedly being funded by Naim giving credence to the theory of ISIS behind Jakarta attacks. Security agencies and counter terrorist experts believe that there are around a thousand militants within Indonesia who sympathize with IS. These militants are scattered all across Indonesia and can become a threat any time. Counter-terrorism officials believe there are at least 1,000 sympathizers of the radical jihadist group across Indonesia.
