Indonesian police raid nets 10 terror suspects (2nd Roundup)

Asia-Pacific News

Jul 3, 2008, 13:45 GMT

Jakarta - Indonesian police have captured 10 terrorist suspects, including a Singaporean, and seized dozens of assembled bombs and a cache of explosives, officials said Thursday.

Indonesian anti-terrorist unit polices escort terrorist suspects as they arrive from Palembang, South Sumatra at the Indonesian Special Police Headquarter in Depok, outskirt Jakarta, 03 July 2008.. Indonesian police arrested nine terrorist suspects allegedly members of the Al-Qaeda-linked, Jamaah Islamiyah network and seized 22 powerful bombs packed in Palembang, South Sumatra, on 02 July 2008. EPA/JURNASYANTO SUKARNOThe 10 suspected members of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), a regional terrorist network linked to al-Qaeda, were arrested during various raids since June 28 at several locations in South Sumatra province. The latest arrest took place on Tuesday in the provincial capital of Palembang, national police spokesman Abubakar Nataprawira told reporters. While local media earlier named the Singaporean as Alim, alias Omar or Taslim, and was arrested Saturday in South Sumatra district of Sekayu, but Nataprawira identified the Singaporean only with his initial as 'MH.' 'The suspect gave training in assembling bombs to people in Palembang related to terrorist acts in Indonesia,' Nataprawira said, adding that he was associated with Mas Selamat bin Kastari, the alleged leader of Jemaah Islamiyah's Singapore operations who escaped from the city-state's prison earlier this year. Nine of the 10 unidentified suspects, handcuffed and blindfolded, arrived in Jakarta from Palembang on a police aircraft, witnesses said. They were escorted by masked and heavily-armed plainclothes anti- terrorist officers to police headquarters outside Jakarta. In addition to 20 assembled bombs - 16 of them ready to be detonated - the counter-terror units also seized dozens of kilograms of potassium chlorate and other explosive materials as well as several hand grenades, Nataprawira said. Police believe Singaporean Alim, an Afghanistan-trained bomb- maker, was a close aide to Malaysian master bomb-maker Azahari bin Husin, who was killed in a shootout with police at his East Java provinces hideout in late 2005. Kompas daily newspaper reported Alim claimed to have met with al- Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden several times. Alim had tipped off the police on the whereabouts of other suspects. leading to their arrest. Nataprawira said the detained terrorist suspects were planning to bomb targets in Indonesia, and they also attempted to murder a Christian priest in West Java in 2005. He also said the suspects had links with a number of terrorist arrested in central Java in 2006 and accused of helping hide fugitive Noordin M Top - a Malaysian national considered a key figure behind a series of bomb attacks in Indonesia over the past few years. Counter-terrorism police are continuing a nationwide manhunt for Malaysian bomb-maker Noordin, who leads a breakaway faction of JI and is believed to be the mastermind behind all the bombings since 2000. Indonesia, with the world's largest Muslim population, has been hit by a string of terrorist attacks blamed on JI since 2000, including bombings on the resort island of Bali in 2002 and 2005 and the Australian embassy in Jakarta in 2004. Aided by funds and expertise from the United States and Australia, anti-terror police have arrested some 300 militants in recent years, but authorities say the threat of more attacks remains.

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Indonesian police raid nets 10 terror suspects (2nd Roundup)

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