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Bashir Says U.S. Is an Enemy of Muslims
Well... Of some of them, anyway...The alleged spiritual leader of the al-Qaida-linked Jemaah Islamiyah terror network has accused Washington of pressuring Indonesia to keep him in prison to stop his campaign to establish Islamic law in the world's most populous Muslim nation. Abu Bakar Bashir, in a jailhouse interview with The Associated Press this week, insisted he had nothing to do with terrorism or a string of devastating bombings in Southeast Asia. Nevertheless, he denounced the United States as an enemy of Muslims, said attacks on U.S. interests were justified and lauded Osama bin Laden as a "member of Allah's army." "America screams ... and then the police say they will arrest me," Bashir said. "America clearly started a war against Islam. We are right to defend ourselves." Indonesian prosecutors have previously tried to convict Bashir on terror and treason charges. But after a series of appeals, have only managed to keep the slender, white-bearded preacher behind bars for a few months on minor immigration violations. He is due for release next week, but it is unlikely he will go free. Indonesian police are facing intense pressure from the United States and Australia, and announced last week they had found new evidence against Bashir, meaning he'll likely stay in jail and will face a retrial. Posted by: Fred 2004-04-24 |
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