Santoso was a fugitive who led the Eastern Indonesian Mujahidin.
Presidential Special Staff Johan Budi, in a short message to ANTARA on Tuesday, hailed the joint military-police task force. He said President Jokowi has expressed his appreciation for the successful operation undertaken by the task force.
"However, the President asked that the remaining members of the group should also be hunted down," remarked Johan, adding that the head of state urged the people to remain vigilant against the threat of terrorism.
Johan Budi cautioned that vigilance should not weaken but should rather be increased to keep the state and nation safe from the threat of terrorism.
The Chief Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, also confirmed that the bodies of the two terrorists who died in the exchange of gunfire on Monday belonged to Santoso and Mukhtar.
Luhut noted that although the armed group has been weakened after the death of Santoso, the Tinombala Task Force operations will be continued to trace the remaining 19 members of the group.(WDY)
