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JI leaders regrouping from Mindanao base
TWO of the terrorists behind the 2002 Bali bombings continue to plot attacks from their hideout in The Philippines and regularly use satellite phones to contact extremists in Indonesian prisons and in Malaysia.Dulmatin and Umar Patek, along with four or five fellow militants and their wives and children, have been hiding in the jungles of the southern Philippines where they continue the fight against the West, according to terror expert and International Crisis Group Southeast Asia director Sidney Jones. But they are keeping in touch with their counterparts throughout Southeast Asia. "They are ringing and they talk to their friends in Indonesian prisons and their friends in Malaysia," Ms Jones said. The US State Department has offered $US10million for the capture of electronics expert Dulmatin and $US1million for Patek. Both were leading extremists in the terror network Jemaah Islamiah, however, Ms Jones said they were now working closely with the Philippines militant force Abu Sayyaf. Dulmatin, a veteran of the Afghan jihad, had been recruited as an Abu Sayyaf commander, she added. JI and Abu Sayyaf have been linked with Osama bin Laden's al-Qa'ida network, and Dulmatin's experience in assembling the Bali bombs may have been drawn upon in The Philippines. Nicknamed The Genius, the 35-year-old Indonesian is thought to have been a protege of master bomb-maker Azahari bin Husin, the JI leader who was shot dead by police in Java last year. A team of Australian Federal Police officers is in The Philippines to help hunt for the militants, who have twice been reported dead. Ms Jones said the terrorists' hideout had been found in the past, and air-strikes carried out, but no trace of their bodies had been found. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo last month ordered the Philippines military to track down Dulmatin and Patek, who experts believe have evaded capture by frequently moving camp. "They are actively engaged," Ms Jones said. "They are writing materials about the jihad in The Philippines which are posted on websites, they are making CDs in Arabic to seek money in the Middle East and they are trying to recruit new people for pay-as-you-go training." An extremist now on trial in Jakarta for providing assistance to terrorists helped Patek and Dulmatin flee Indonesia shortly after the 2002 Bali bombings. Abdullah Sunata told police Patek had sent him seven guns in April or May 2004 to use in the Indonesian province of Ambon, where sectarian conflict raged until 2002, and where sporadic violence has continued. Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty said in Jakarta this week that capturing Dulmatin and Patek was crucial in the fight against terror. The bombers are high on the list of Asia's most wanted men, following the 2002 Bali blasts which killed 202 people, including 88 Australians. Dulmatin allegedly helped assemble the bombs used at the Sari Club and Paddy's Bar, and Patek is believed to have been an assistant field co-ordinator for the operation. "Quite clearly they're our highest priority," Mr Keelty said. Militants across the region used a variety of communication methods, Mr Keelty said. "We see intelligence on that nearly every day," he said. "There are significant linkages still, most of it on a personal basis, but some of it through different communications technology." Posted by: Dan Darling 2006-03-04 |
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