GPI unsure about fate of Indonesian fighters in Afghanistan<\/p>\n
Abu Hanifah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Chairman of the Islamic Youth Movement (GPI) Suaib Didu said he
\nhad not yet received any new information about the fate of
\nperhaps dozens of volunteer Indonesian fighters being held as
\nprisoners of war by Northern Alliance troops in Afghanistan's
\ncapital city of Kabul.<\/p>\n
\"I have yet to talk to my contact people in Iran about the
\nfate of the Indonesian fighters arrested by the Northern Alliance
\nin Kabul,\" Suaib told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.<\/p>\n
He said the last time he talked to his contacts in Iran was
\nWednesday last week, but \"they were only explaining the position
\nof our people who were still there\".<\/p>\n
Local media reported on Friday that Indonesian volunteers were
\namong approximately 50 pro-Taliban fighters captured by the
\nNorthern Alliance in Kabul last Thursday. The others included
\nSaudi Arabians, Kyrgyztanis and Pakistanis.<\/p>\n
Almost immediately after the United States and its allies
\nattacked Afghanistan on Oct. 7, the GPI sent at least 300
\nIndonesian volunteers to Afghanistan to fight for the Taliban.<\/p>\n
Suaib said approximately 150 Indonesians were still working
\nwith the Taliban in Kunduz, around 50 people were already in
\nPakistan and another 100 or so were still waiting at the border
\nattempting to enter Pakistan.<\/p>\n
Kunduz fell to anti-Taliban forces on Sunday. Hundreds of
\nforeign fighters loyal to Saudi-born Osama bin Laden, who is
\nbeing hunted by the United States for the deadly attacks on
\nWashington and New York in September, were reportedly being held
\nin Northern Alliance-controlled Mazar-i-Sharif.<\/p>\n
\"Perhaps the Indonesians arrested and detained by Northern
\nAlliance troops were part of the 150 fighters who were still in
\nAfghanistan. Some of them were tasked to conduct spying
\noperations in Kabul,\" Suaib said.<\/p>\n
He said someone \"from the Cabinet\" of President Megawati
\nSoekarnoputri contacted him on Saturday evening to ask about the
\nIndonesians being detained in Kabul, but he refused to give any
\ninformation about their whereabouts in Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
\"GPI opted not to cooperate with a government that cannot be
\ntrusted because it is very obedient to the United States,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"We only believe people whom we consider trust-worthy,\" said
\nSuaib, adding that someone from the Indonesian Embassy in
\nPakistan also tried to contact GPI leaders but failed.<\/p>\n
Coordinator Minister for Political, Social and Security
\nAffairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in Surabaya, East Java, on
\nSaturday that Indonesian volunteers were illegal because their
\ndeparture did not have the approval of the government, but
\nstressed that the Indonesian government, through the Indonesian
\nEmbassy in Pakistan, would do its utmost to determine the
\nwhereabouts of the fighters jailed in Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
He also said that the government was still trying to contact
\nand meet with the GPI volunteers in Afghanistan as well as their
\nliaison officers in the region.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gpi-unsure-about-fate-of-indonesian-fighters-in-afghanistan-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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