Sea port in Jakarta, Indonesia
Workers load goods onto a ship for domestic distribution at Jakarta's traditional port of Sunda Kelapa in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Since the 2002 Bali bombings, Indonesia has led the region in effective approaches to addressing violent extremism. However, the transnational reach of the Islamic State has brought with it new challenges. Some Indonesians have travelled to Syria and to the Philippines, drawn by the idea of a caliphate and a sense of righteousness in fighting what they see as threats to Islam. This coupled with the incidence of several attacks involving families such as the 2018 Surabaya bombings suggest that the nature of violent extremism continues to evolve.