Indonesian forces kill suspected militant accused of beheadings

Central Sulawesi Regional Police spokesperson Colonel Didik Supranoto displays a photo of Ahmad Gazali, bottom left (Mohammad Taufan/AP)

Indonesian security forces have killed a suspected militant accused of beheadings, during a shootout in a sweeping counterterrorism campaign against extremists in remote mountain jungles, police said.

Provincial police chief Rudy Sufahriadi said Ahmad Gazali, 27, also known as Ahmad Panjang, a key member of the East Indonesia Mujahideen network, was fatally shot by a joint team of military and police officers near Uempasa hamlet in Central Sulawesi province’s mountainous Parigi Moutong district. It borders Poso district, an extremist hotbed in the province.