09/09/24
ISIS plot to kill the Pope with bow and arrow: Police foil plan by fanatics outraged over pontiff's visit to Jakarta mosque
An 'ISIS-inspired' terror plot to kill Pope Francis with bows and arrows during his visit to Indonesia has been foiled by police.
Seven suspects were arrested across September 2 and 3 following tip-offs from concerned citizens.
Bow and arrows, a drone and ISIS leaflets were found during a raid of one of the alleged militant's houses.
Some of those arrested had also pledged allegiance to ISIS, The Straits Times has reported.
The suspects, who have been named only as HFP, LB, DF, FA, HS, ER and RS, were reportedly angered by the Pope visiting Jakarta's Istiqlal mosque, the largest in South-east Asia.
here was also fury over the government's request for TV stations to broadcast the Pope's visit over the usual Islamic call to prayer.
A spokesman for Indonesia's terror-crushing unit Detachment-88 said investigations are 'ongoing' and it is unclear if the detainees knew each other.
'We have a mechanism to monitor and filter. We had tip-off information from members of the public,' Colonel Aswin Siregar added.
Pope Francis is currently on a 12-day tour of the Asia Pacific during which he will visit Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore.
He arrived in East Timor on Monday, where he will hold a huge mass expected to attract more than half the country's 1.3 million population.
Catholic devotees in Asia's youngest nation have clamoured to see Francis - making pilgrimages from faraway towns and hours-long crossings of its border with Indonesia.
Tens of thousands lined the streets of capital Dili, waving Vatican-coloured flags and umbrellas while screaming as the 87-year-old was driven through the streets flanked by security.
He appeared in good spirits after landing from Papua New Guinea for the third stop of a gruelling 12-day Asia-Pacific tour, waving and smiling to a swarm of devotees trying to catch a glimpse of him.
'This will be a proud moment for me and my family, I think also for all the people of Timor-Leste,' said a waiting 42-year-old Nunsia Karmen Maya.
The pontiff was gifted a traditional scarf after arriving to an honour guard and greetings by President Jose Ramos-Horta at Dili's airport, which has been closed to civilian flights for three days.
He will address East Timor officials and diplomats later on Monday but the trip's highlight will be the colossal mass on Tuesday, which is expected to draw 700,000 worshippers.
In Dili, a small seaside city sandwiched between mountains and the turquoise waters of the Ombai Strait, celebrations over the three-day visit were already in full swing.
The city has had an expensive makeover before the visit and authorities have relocated poor street-dwellers, including vendors in areas where Francis will travel, prompting criticism on social media.
Rights groups say some makeshift homes built by the poor were demolished in preparation for the mass. The government says they were erected illegally.
Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao swept the streets with locals to help clean up the city before the pontiff's arrival.
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