A deadly incident involving police and members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) has raised questions about police behaviour.

Early on Monday 07 December an alleged clash between police and members of the FPI on the Jakarta-Cikampek Tollway resulted in the deaths of 6 FPI members. Contrasting versions about the incident have emerged.

The Indonesian Government faces serious challenges in dealing with the populism of Rizieq Shihab and the Islamic Defenders Front. Source: Image by Global Media Sharing/Creative Commons

Greg Fealy, Associate Professor in the Department of Political and Social Change at ANU explains the tensions between Indonesian police and the FPII and how those tensions were exacerbated by FPI leader Rizieq Shihab’s return to Indonesia. Should the police have been more consistent in their dealings with the FPI?

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Rizieq Shihab's bodyguards and supporters at Soetta Airport welcoming his returned from Arab Saudi and ignoring the health protocol. Source: Photo: Tagar/Getty Images.