Kalora was killed in a large-scale counter-terrorism operation conducted by security forces in remote mountainous areas of Central Sulawesi.
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In addition to Kalora, another radical died. General Farid Makruf called Kalora the leader of the East Indonesia network of Islamic radicals from a group known in Indonesia as MIT.
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According to Makruf, the district of Poso, on the border of which both men were shot, is considered the center of extremists.
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In 2014, Kalor’s group pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS). Makruf said the soldiers were looking for four other wanted members.
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Kalora replaced the Islamist Santos, whose security forces killed in 2016, in the leadership of MIT. The group claimed responsibility for the attacks and murders of police officers and minority Christians. Dozens of MIT commanders were captured after Santos’ death.
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The group killed four Christians in Pos in May, and one of the perpetrators cut off the head. Authorities said it was revenge for the killing of four members of the group, including Santos’ son.
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Makruf said that due to the unavailability of the terrain, the bodies of both men remained in place in the village of Astina and that the helicopter would arrive for them on Sunday.
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Indonesia is the most populous Muslim state and has been fighting radicals since 2002, when 202 people, most of them foreigners, died in the assassination of Bali.
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Since then, extremists have focused on small-scale actions on police officers, members of counter-terrorism forces and government employees.
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