Surabaya redux: terror time bomb fears as Indonesia frees Islamic extremists

Six months after three families blew themselves up in Surabaya, killing 28, Indonesia is poised to release a wave of extremists from prison. And with Christmas and an election looming, experts fear terror will return

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Firefighters battle a blaze during the Surabaya terror attacks in May. Photo: AFP

Published: 8:00am, 18 Nov 2018Updated: 8:00am, 18 Nov 2018

On May 13 and 14, 28 people were killed and dozens more injured in multiple bombings carried out by three families in Surabaya, East Java.

It was Indonesia’s deadliest terrorist strike in more than a decade. And it was the first time that entire families, including children, had been involved in such attacks in the country.

Authorities tightened security in response, passing a new counterterrorism l aw and making hundreds of arrests.

But experts warn that the Surabaya suicide attacks may be just a preview of what is to come, with extremist elements in Indonesia likely to regroup, support for Islamic State (IS) likely to continue and new alliances set to emerge.

“The government needs to pay particular attention to Jamaah Ansharud Daulah members [the pro-IS group linked to the Surabaya attacks] who are about to be or have been released, because this is the pool from which new leaders will be drawn,” says Sidney Jones, director of the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) in Jakarta.

“The Surabaya bombings show that the decline of IS in the Middle East has in no way diminished the fervour of its supporters in Indonesia,” IPAC’s latest report reads. “Jamaah Ansharud Daulah members in East Java and elsewhere took to heart the exhortation from IS to wage war at home, and no one should think that the police crackdown has put an end to that determination. If past patterns hold, there may well be a period of dormancy until surveillance eases and complacency returns. But the problem is far from over.”