KL yet to arrest four JI suspects<\/p>\n
Agence France-Presse, Kuala Lumpur<\/p>\n
Malaysia has rounded up all but four of its most wanted terror
\nsuspects and their capture will effectively wipe out the Jamaah
\nIslamiyah (JI) leadership in the country, a top security official
\nsaid on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Stung by reports that two Malaysians played major roles in
\nbomb attacks in Indonesia, Kuala Lumpur is fighting a growing
\nperception that the top ranks of the al-Qaeda-linked JI are full
\nof Malaysians.<\/p>\n
Indonesian police on Tuesday accused Malaysians Azahari Husin
\nand Noordin Muhammad Top of involvement at a senior level in last
\nyear's Bali blast which killed 202 people and this month's attack
\non the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta, which killed 12.<\/p>\n
Azahari, a former university professor, was said to be the
\nbomb-maker while Noordin was allegedly the overall "controller"
\nof the Jakarta bombing.<\/p>\n
A senior Malaysian security official, speaking on condition of
\nanonymity, told AFP the two men were among the last four on a
\nmost-wanted list of nine issued last year.<\/p>\n
He named the other two as Zulkiifli Marzuki, describing him as
\na member of the Malaysian JI "think-tank", and Zulkifli Hir.<\/p>\n
The five who have been captured are held either in Malaysia or
\nIndonesia, he said.<\/p>\n
More than 70 Islamic militants, many of them allegedly JI
\nmembers, are already in detention in Malaysia and the
\nintelligence official said the capture of the last four would
\nwipe out the group's leadership structure.<\/p>\n
He noted that Malaysia itself had circulated its most-wanted
\nlist to security forces of other countries in the region long
\nbefore the Bali blast in October last year.<\/p>\n
The opposition Democratic Action Party (DAP), however, called
\nWednesday for the government to present parliament with a full
\naccounting of the Malaysian connection to JI.<\/p>\n
Party leader Lim Kit Siang said in a statement that Malaysians
\nwere facing increasing suspicion and harassment when they
\ntraveled to Western countries because of the perception of a
\nterrorist link.<\/p>\n
He noted that Azahari "is widely named" as a possible
\nsuccessor to JI operations chief Hambali, who was arrested in
\nThailand last week.<\/p>\n
Lim Kit Siang also noted that it was reportedly the arrest in
\nThailand of a Malaysian, known by the alias Li-Li, which led to
\nthe capture of Indonesian national Hambali.<\/p>\n
Li-Li and Malaysian Zubair Mohamad, who was captured in
\nBangkok in June, are now believed to be in U.S. custody at a
\nsecret location along with Hambali.<\/p>\n
The security official, however, dismissed the suggestion that
\nAzahari or any other Malaysian might take over the operational
\nleadership of JI.<\/p>\n
The chief would always be an Indonesian and most likely a
\ngraduate of the Ngruki Muslim boarding school on the outskirts of
\nSolo, where several terror suspects have studied, he said.<\/p>\n
The school is headed by Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, the alleged
\nspiritual leader of JI who is on trial in Jakarta for treason.<\/p>\n
"It all goes back to Indonesia," the official said, noting
\nthat the Malaysians involved were recruited by Hambali and
\nBa'asyir when the two Indonesians lived in exile in Malaysia
\nduring the rule of former Indonesian dictator Soeharto.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Malaysia has formed a special police force to
\ncounter security threats from JI and militant groups operating in
\nthe nearby southern Philippines, a senior official said on
\nWednesday.<\/p>\n
Ali Hanafiah, the brigade commander for eastern Sabah state on
\nthe island of Borneo, said the recent capture of suspected
\nregional terror leader Hambali and militant Muslim groups
\noperating in the neighboring southern Philippines prompted the
\ncreation of the unit, codenamed the "Tiger Platoon."<\/p>\n
"The Tiger platoon will bolster our capacity to fight JI and
\nany other militants," he told AFP.<\/p>\n
The force has already been strategically deployed in parts of
\nSabah, particularly in areas close to the southern Philippines,
\nAli told AFP.<\/p>\n
Officers of the unit, all experts in sniper fire and close
\ncombat, have also been trained in urban-guerrilla warfare and
\nhostage rescue, he said.<\/p>",
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