JAKARTA, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Indonesian anti-terror unit raided militant strongholds in the Central Sulawesi town of Poso Monday morning, in which one officer was killed and three others seriously injured, the police headquarters said.

    "This morning, the police launched an operation to arrest fugitives in a string of violent clashes in Poso but it met resistance from local community," national police spokesman Insp.Gen. Sisno Adiwinoto told a news conference here.

    The anti-terror unit involved in shootouts with a group of armed in several places in Poso.

    Officer Roni Iskandar was shot at the head and died in a few moments while three officers sustained serious gunshot wounds in separated clashes, he said.

    Several suspects were arrested but their identities were not disclosed for security reasons, he said.

    Sisno, however, declined to explain if there was any casualty from the militant group

    Meanwhile, the Antara news agency reported two civilians were accidentally injured in the clashes. They were being treated at a local hospital.

    Poso was a scene of deadly sectarian conflicts from 1999 to 2001. A truce between the warring Christians and Muslims was signed in 2001 but bombings, gun attacks and ambushes have occasionally occurred since then.