Haeril Halim and Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – The Interfaith Harmony Forum (FKUB) in Medan, North Sumatra, on Tuesday strongly condemned the recent Islamic State (IS) group-linked knife attack at a security checkpoint at the headquarters of the North Sumatra Police that resulted in the death of a police officer.
Forum chairman Palit Muda Harahap described the attack as an act of terror that should not be connected to any particular religion and was clearly aimed at disturbing peace in society.
"We should fight terror acts together. We call on the police to bring the perpetrators to justice," said Palit before leaders of various faiths in Medan on Tuesday.
Palit called on members of the public to be aware of the situation in their neighborhood and swiftly report any suspicious activity to the police.
In total, four police officers were on guard when the attack happened on Sunday. Two of the officers were on patrol, one was outside the checkpoint and one stayed inside to rest.
Two alleged Islamic State (IS) militants stabbed and killed Adj. First Insp. Martua Singalinging while he was taking a rest inside the checkpoint. One of the officers, Brig. E. Ginting, immediately alerted other checkpoints where some Mobile Brigade unit members were stationed.
Brimob officers later shot the IS supporters, killing one, identified as AR, and putting the other, identified as SP, in the hospital in a critical condition. (ary)