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JAKARTA (Reuters): Six suspected supporters of a hardline Indonesian Islamic cleric, Rizieq Shihab, were killed in a clash with police on Monday (December 7), Jakarta Police Chief Fadil Imran told reporters.
The incident occurred shortly after midnight on a highway when a police car was attacked while following a car believed to be carrying supporters of the cleric, resulting in a shooting, Fadil said.
Police have been investigating the cleric for violations of health protocols during the pandemic after large gatherings to celebrate his return last month to the world’s largest Muslim-majority country from self-exile in Saudi Arabia.
The 55-year-old cleric who heads the Front of Islamic Defenders (FPI), a conservative Islamic group that has become politically influential in recent years, left Indonesia in 2017 after facing charges of pornography and insulting state ideology.
Despite the allegations, which his supporters say were false and an attempt to discredit him, Rizieq’s self-imposed exile appears to have done little to diminish his appeal.
When he landed in the capital Jakarta, tens of thousands flocked to the blank Islamic airport, ignoring coronavirus protocols and clamoring to kiss his hand.
Before leaving Indonesia, Rizieq was the front man for the hardline ‘212’ movement that opposed the former Christian governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, better known as ‘Ahok’, who was charged and eventually imprisoned for insulting Islam.
The demonstrations were the largest since the fall of Indonesia’s former authoritarian ruler, Suharto, in 1998.
In the weeks after his return, Rizieq has declared his plans to embark on a “moral crusade” and has met with some politicians and opposition figures.
FPI officials could not be immediately reached for comment on Monday’s fatal collision with police.
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