Six militants shot dead in Indonesia were on revenge mission after leader arrested

Six suspected Islamic militants killed in a standoff with police were planning to attack police officers in Indonesia’s East Java province to seek revenge for the arrest of a radical leader, authorities said Sunday.

The men were cornered in a village in Tuban district on Saturday after attempting to shoot a traffic police officer who was approaching them when he saw their car stopped at the roadside, said national police spokesman Rikwanto.

The six refused appeals to surrender during a standoff that lasted several hours and were fatally shot by police, said Rikwanto, who goes by a single name.

On Friday, counterterrorism police arrested three suspected militants who were allegedly planning to attack a police station in East Java. Among those arrested was Zainal Anshori, a senior figure of Jemaah Anshorut Daulah, an umbrella group of Indonesian extremists that claims allegiance to the Islamic State group.

Rikwanto said that Anshori had orchestrated Saturday’s planned attack.