Two most wanted terrorist suspects still pose threat<\/p>\n
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The top two most wanted terrorist suspects in the country,
\nAzahari bin Husin and Noordin Mohd, are likely to carry out
\nterrorist attacks while on the run, police told the press on
\nMonday.<\/p>\n
The National Police detective chief Com. Gen. Erwin Mappaseng
\nsaid here Monday that based on the confessions of accomplices
\nTohir and Ismail, fugitives Azahari and Noordin could launch more
\nattacks if they were assisted by other group members.<\/p>\n
Both men are allegedly members of regional terrorist group
\nJamaah Islamiyah (JI), which is linked to Osama bin Laden's
\ninternational terrorist group, al-Queda.<\/p>\n
\"Even though most of the suspects have been detained, they can
\nrecruit new members to help them carry out their actions,\" said
\nMappaseng.<\/p>\n
Mappaseng said that both Azahari and Noordin had planned to
\nbomb several places in Bandung, including one foreign bank on Jl.
\nAsia-Africa, one of the busiest office buildings in the city.<\/p>\n
\"The place is not in Dago as I mentioned previously but on Jl.
\nAsia-Africa. We have searched the area and other places. We
\ncannot specify the places as people might panic,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Both Azahari and Noordin narrowly escaped arrest at their
\nrented rooms in Bandung, West Java, last Thursday. They are
\nwanted for their alleged roles in two deadly terrorist attacks,
\nthe Bali bombings on Oct. 12, 2002 and the JW Marriott Hotel
\nattack on Aug. 5, 2003.<\/p>\n
Azahari, an expert in bomb-making, is believed to have
\nmasterminded the Bali bombings in which at least 202 people were
\nkilled and the JW Marriott Hotel bombing in which 12 people died.<\/p>\n
The police have arrested around 100 extremists, including more
\nthan 30 implicated in the Bali bombings case and 12 in the
\nMarriot attack.<\/p>\n
The police also distributed new pictures of Noordin and the
\nlatest four sketches of Azahari. The pictures of Noordin were
\ntaken two weeks before the police raided the rented room on Jl.
\nKembangan, Bandung.<\/p>\n
\"The main (identifiable) characteristics of the two are their
\nMalay dialects. Others, such as moustaches and beards can be
\nhidden or cut. But Azahari must wear thick-lensed glasses because
\nhe can see without them,\" said Mappaseng.<\/p>\n
Mappaseng said that the explosive that the fugitives were
\ncarrying were not powerful enough to carry out large-scale
\nattacks. They said that the police had already uncovered powerful
\nbombs accounting for most of the explosive materials that the
\ngroup were thought to have possessed.<\/p>\n
\"We found four bombs which were ready to explode and two that
\nhad been wired, and we found 3.5 kg of the total of 5 kg TNT that
\nwe believed they had left. They had used the 1.5 kg before,
\nincluding what they strapped to their bodies,\" said Erwin.<\/p>\n
\"These materials are the only explosives left after their
\nattacks on several places since 2000, including Bali and Hotel
\nMarriott,\" added Erwin.<\/p>\n
As part of the manhunt, security personnel have been deployed
\naround Merak harbor in Serang, Banten since Saturday. The
\nsecurity personnel are equipped with metal detectors to check
\npassengers.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile at least 3,000 police personnel in Cirebon, the city
\nin West Java where both Tohir and Ismail were nabbed by the
\npolice, have been ready to help hunt the fugitives and guard
\nvital and strategic places on the East Java north coast.<\/p>\n
The operation is also aimed at securing hotels, amusement
\ncenters and other places frequented by expatriates in Cirebon.<\/p>\n
\"Besides which, we will conduct spot-checks of public
\ntransport,\" said City Police chief Sr. Comr Sunaryono.<\/p>\n
He also said that the police were patrolling the border
\nbetween West Java and Central Java to stop the fugitives from
\ncrossing it.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/two-most-wanted-terrorist-suspects-still-pose-threat-1447893297",
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