Jakarta – The National Police intends to crack down on the illegal possession of firearms nationwide to prevent the illegal distribution of arms. The recent shooting of police officers is also a reason for the crackdown.

"Two police officers recently fell victim to recent shootings," National Police deputy chief Comr. Gen. Oegroseno said without further elaboration on Tuesday as quoted by tribunnews.com.

Two police officers, namely Adj. Second Insp. Patah Saktiyono and Adj. First Insp. Dwiyatna, were shot while driving by unidentified armed men in Central Jakarta and Ciputat, Tangerang, respectively.

The police deployed teams to pursue the perpetrators and invited Densus 88 counterterrorism squad to join the hunt. No one has been declared a suspect as yet.

According to terrorism experts, the National Police had long been targeted by terrorists because they were considered a symbol of the state, which had declared war on terror.(hrl/dic)