Suspected militant accused of beheadings killed in Indonesia

By MOHAMMAD TAUFAN
Associated Press

PALU, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian security forces have killed a suspected militant accused of beheadings in a shootout Tuesday in a sweeping counterterrorism campaign against extremists in remote mountain jungles. Police say the man was a key member of the East Indonesia Mujahideen network. He was fatally shot by a joint team of military and police officers in Central Sulawesi province’s mountainous Parigi Moutong district. It borders Poso district, an extremist hotbed in the province. The group has claimed responsibility for the killings of police officers and minority Christians, some by beheading. It has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group. Police say Gazali conducted several of the group’s executions, including the beheadings of four Christian farmers last May.