Indonesia confirms death of most-wanted terrorist
Xinhua, July 19, 2016 Adjust font size:
Indonesia on Tuesday confirmed the death of the country's most-wanted terrorist who was killed in a gunfight with officers in the vast jungles of Central Sulawesi on early Monday evening.
"Yes, (Santoso's death) has (been confirmed)," Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan told reporters at his office in Jakarta.
He also said that the other body belonged to one of Santoso's followers, who was identified as Mukhtar.
Previously, it was reported that the body was of Santoso's deputy named Basri, who apparently managed to escape into the forest during the shootout.
Luhut added that troops involved in Operation Tinombala -- the kill-or-capture mission against Santoso's group -- would continue going after the rest of them.
Santoso was arrested in 2005, but broke free from jail five years later.
More than 3,000 officers from the Indonesian military and the police have been deployed to take him and his followers down over the past few years.
President Joko Widodo, who took office in October 2014, vowed to make capturing Santoso a top priority. Endit