Indonesia to deploy 8,000 police for Obama trip security

JAKARTA - Indonesian police plan to deploy more than 8,000 personnel to provide security for a much-awaited visit by US President Barack Obama next week, a spokesman said Wednesday.

Obama, who lived four years as a child in Jakarta, postponed two previous planned trips to Indonesia this year, owing to preoccupations with domestic affairs.

National police spokesman Iskandar Hasan said despite the expected heavy security, no intelligence reports indicated an attack was planned on Obama.

“If there was a terrorist threat, I’m sure the presidential guard force is privy to such intelligence,” he said.

Indonesia has been hit by a series of bombings targeting Western interests in recent years.

The White House said Obama was due to arrive Tuesday in Indonesia and visit Jakarta’s biggest mosque, Istiqlal, Wednesday.

Indonesian officials said Obama and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono were expected to sign a comprehensive partnership between the two countries.

Obama is widely popular in Indonesia, where he lived from 1967 to 1971 after his mother married an Indonesian.

An Indonesian film depicting Obama’s childhood was released in July. It was supposed to be screened in June to coincide with Obama’s earlier planned trip.