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| Southeast Asia |
| Indonesia: Arrested Terror Suspects Just Foot Soldiers, Expert Says |
| 2007-04-07 |
| (AKI) - Recent police anti-terror raids in Indonesia have been important but the risk of attacks remains high, according to Ken Conboy, an expert on Islamic terrorism in southeast Asia. "The raids led to the seizing of a high quantity of explosives. But I am not sure those arrested knew exactly what they were doing. I believe they are just labourers," Conboy told Adnkronos International (AKI). Conboy also said he did not believe that terror group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) had created a cell to kill members of a special anti-terror squad of the Indonesian police, the Detachment 88, as reported by the local media. According to the reports, the terror cell is called Qoriya, or Ascari. "It is not like the JI," said the analyst, the author of 'The Second Front: Inside Asia's Most Dangerous Terrorist Network', a book on the history of Jemaah Islamiyah. "Moreover, Ascari is not a new group; it is a name that has been around for a while. JI's main targets remain Western interests in Indonesia. The group has in the past attacked policemen but it would not even have the capabilities to track down Detachment 88." Detachment 88 has carried out a number of raids at the end of March near Yogyakarta, Central Java. The raids have led to the arrest of seven suspects and the death of an alleged militant. Police also confiscated a cache of weapons and explosives. In contradictory statements, the police have said in the past few days both that the explosives were to be employed in a large scale attack similar to the one carried out in Bali in 2002, or in an attack Poso, in the Sulawesi province, a key JI base. |
| Posted by:Fred |