The National Police disclosed Friday that suspected terrorists recently arrested in a series of raids planned to attack the State Palace on Independence Day.
Since February, the police's anti-terror squad has managed to arrest 58 suspects and kill 13 others.
Speaking at a press conference were National Police chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri and Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Djoko Suyanto.
"They wanted to kill the President, other high-ranking officials and important foreign guests attending the ceremony," Bambang said. "Immediately after the attack, they would have announced that Indonesia was no longer a democratic state and would declare sharia law".
He said the suspects had been trained as snipers as indicated by a telescopic sight found in the latest raid in Sukoharjo, Central Java.
Bambang said the alleged terrorists had decided to choose Aug. 17 after learning security officers would not be carrying live rounds during the Independence Day ceremony.
At the State Palace, presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha said Yudhoyono had not objected to the police's shoot-on-sight policy in their fight against terrorism.
"The President asked the police to work professionally and enforce the law, including when it comes to technical operational procedures in arresting suspected terrorists,.
"The President said the police had done a very good job and that he appreciated it," he said.
During the recent raids, police confiscated bank notes totalling about Rp 1 billion (US$110,000) from the suspects. "The money was raised to finance acts of terror and run military-style training camps in Aceh," he said.
The money was found in rupiah, Malaysian ringgit and US dollars from suspected terrorists Abdul Haris aka Haris Al Falah, Haryadi Usman, Syarif Usman, and Maulana, Bambang said.
"From Maulana we seized Rp 250 million in cash," Bambang told a media conference on Friday. Maulana was shot dead during a raid in Cawang, East Jakarta, on Wednesday. The police confiscated Rp 400 million from Abdul, Rp 200 million from Syarif and Rp 150 million from Haryadi.
Bambang said that out of the 71 suspects arrested and killed this year, 14 had been formerly convicted for terrorist activities.
- Suherdjoko contributed to the story from Sukoharjo.
Terror raids time line
Feb. 22: A military-style training camp is raided in dense jungle in Aceh Besar regency, Aceh. Seven suspects are arrested; police seize firearms and ammunition. Police conduct rolling raids in Aceh and Medan up until April, arresting 46 suspects and killing four others.
March 4: A shoot out between antiterror squad and terrorist group takes place in Lamkabeu village in Aceh Besar regency. Three police officers killed, 10 others wounded. Suspect Teuku Marzuki alias Abu Khotob is shot dead.
March 9: Antiterror squad raid an Internet caf* in Pamulang, Tangerang, Banten. Three suspects are arrested while three others, including the region's most-wanted terror suspect, Dulmatin, are shot dead.
March 16: Suspect Muchtar bin Ibrahim aka Teuku Tar surrenders at Lhokseumawe Police Station in Aceh.
April 11: Six suspects are arrested in Medan, North Sumatra.
May 6: As many as 16 terrorist suspects are arrested at four different locations in Greater Jakarta.
May 12: Three raids conducted almost simultaneously in Bekasi, West Java; Cawang, East Jakarta; and Cikampek, West Java. Two suspects are arrested in Bekasi while three suspects are killed in Cawang. In Cikampek, police kill two suspects and nab one.
May 13: A battery shop is raided in Sukoharjo, Central Java. Three suspects, Hamid Agung Wibowo, Joko Purwanto, and Erwin Suratman, are arrested.
Source: National Police
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