Laskar Jihad () was an Islamist and anti-Christian Indonesian militia, which was founded and led by Jafar Umar Thalib. The primary cause for the creation of Laskar Jihad was the outbreak of sectarian violence in the Indonesian provinces of Maluku and North Maluku where clashes between Muslims and Christians erupted in 1999. Soon after its creation, Laskar Jihad opened recruitment centers in various parts of Indonesia.

Laskar Jihad arrived in Ambon in May 2000 and then in other of the Maluku Islands (also known as the Moluccas) where the Islamist militia joined Maluku Muslims in the fighting with Christian groups, thereby exacerbating the ongoing violence. with the Islamists burning down churches and houses of the indigenous Melanesian communities in Ambon and other Moluccan islands. In the following two years, an estimated 9,000 people were killed and hundreds of thousands had to flee their towns. A Laskar Jihad member later recalled being welcomed by Indonesian soldiers who supplied the Islamist militia with standard military equipment.

Additionally, attacks were launched against Christian communities in Sulawesi. Laskar Jihad also sent militants to West Papua and Aceh, at opposite ends of the country.

In February 2002, the Malino II Accord between Muslims and Christians was signed, which demanded among other things the withdrawal of Laskar Jihad from the Maluku Islands. Eventually, the peace agreement was followed by a decrease in violence in Maluku, though incidents continued through mid- and late 2002. Laskar Jihad has also been held responsible for attacks on Papuans. In May 2003, reports smuggled out of Papua claimed arson and machetes had been used to destroy ten townships, their food gardens and livestock, sending the surviving women and children into the jungle to hide from their pursuers.

Laskar Jihad's operations in Maluku and West Papua have been actively supported by parts of the Indonesian military. Much of the funding for the militia has come from within the military. Laskar Jihad fighters have been trained by the Indonesian military elite force Kopassus Laskar Jihad members even received military escorts while travelling from West Java to Surabaya. The behaviour of the military in Maluku was similarly biased. Although at first a newly created military unit, the Joint Battalion, took action against Laskar Jihad in Maluku, it was replaced in mid-2001 by Kopassus, which was more sympathetic towards the militia.

Like the extremist Islamic Defenders Front, Laskar Jihad has also carried out attacks on bars, brothels and discothèques, In Laskar Jihad camps, women are required to wear burqas, and television is banned.

Thalib has met with Osama bin Laden, but allegedly turned down offers of funding support because of doubts about bin Laden's piety. However, scholars have noted that fatwas issued by Salafi muftis from the Arab Peninsula played a significant role in the formation of Laskar Jihad. and second, the fight against separatism.

References

  • Terrorism in the Spotlight: Laskar Jihad
  • Laskar Jihad, Alive and Well in Papua
  • West Papua Militia in May 2005
  • BBC - Who are the Laskar Jihad? (2000)
  • TIMEAsia.com Photo essay on Laskar Jihad
  • Para-military Background on Laskar Jihad
  • Laskar Jihad book by Noorhaidi Hasan, limited on-line preview