TNI Deploys Troops to Hunt Armed Robbers; Does This Align with Military Remit?

JAKARTA — The Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), through the Jakarta Military Command (Kodam Jaya), has stated that it is participating in operations to apprehend armed robbers (begal) who have been plaguing Jakarta and surrounding areas.

Letkol Arh Noor Iskak, Head of Information for Kodam Jaya, announced that the command has deployed personnel, including from combat battalion units, to support joint patrols with police forces.

“We have already carried out joint patrols from the grassroots level. The units we have deployed include not only territorial units from the District Military Command (Koramil) and Kodim, but also combat battalion units,” Iskak said during a press conference at Jakarta Metro Police headquarters on Friday, 22 May 2026.

Iskak stated that TNI involvement was intended to support security operations in Jakarta alongside the Armed Robber Task Force established by the General Criminal Investigation Directorate of Jakarta Metro Police.

“The presence of security forces among the public is expected to provide a sense of safety and serve as a manifestation of state protection for the community,” he said.

Meanwhile, military analyst Mufti Makarim emphasised that TNI involvement in pursuing criminal offenders such as armed robbers does not fall within the TNI’s core duties and functions (tupoksi).

“It does not align with (the TNI’s remit),” Mufti said when contacted by Kompas.com on Saturday, 23 May 2026.

Furthermore, the TNI Law does not authorise the military to pursue criminal perpetrators such as armed robbers.

“If wrongdoing occurs, what law would be used to prosecute them? Civil law? The TNI would not agree to that,” he stated.

For this reason, Mufti argued that the TNI should refrain from entering domains outside its authority, notwithstanding its perceived capability to do so.