Azahari's death won't eliminate terror threat, experts caution
Tiarma Siboro and Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The death of Azahari bin Husin, one of the most wanted terrorists in Southeast Asia, has dealt a serious blow to the terror network, but officials and experts cautioned that it would not eliminate the terror threat in this country.
"Each time the security forces arrest a top leader of a terrorist group, the network will be weakened. But that doesn't mean that terror attacks will not occur again. Therefore, I would ask the public to remain vigilant," Vice President Jusuf Kalla said on Thursday.
Minister of Defense Juwono Sudarsono expressed a similar view, calling on the public to remain alert and help the security forces, whose task in hunting other terror suspects might actually have become harder now with the death of one of the top terrorist leaders.
"I guess the police and intelligence personnel will now have to work even harder. Tracing terrorist cells when they're messed up is even more difficult," Juwono said.
Azahari, a Malaysian citizen dubbed in his own country as "The Demolition Man" for his handiwork in a number of bomb attacks in Indonesia, was killed in a police raid on Wednesday in the East Java town of Batu.
Azahari, who is believed to be a key member of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), a shadowy regional terror network linked to al- Qaeda, and another Malaysian fugitive, Noordin M. Top, are jointly accused of being behind a series of bomb attacks in Indonesia, including the 2002 bomb blasts on Bali that killed 202 people, bomb blasts in Jakarta, and the triple suicide bomb attacks on the island early last month, which killed 23 people, including the three bombers.
Ansja'ad Mbai, head of the antiterror desk at the Office of the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, said that the death of Azahari would only serve to momentarily distract the terrorists in Indonesia.
"For the actual terror network that has been actively conducting attacks, this clearly will have a great impact ..., but we all know that terrorism is a crime based on ideology and politics, and will not stop just because of the death of a certain figure," he was quoted by AFP as saying.
He said that the short-term impact of the death of Azahari would be a significant lessening in terrorist activities, but he warned that intelligence information showed that the networks here had been actively recruiting new members and providing them with "special training."
Religious leaders also expressed caution.
"I heard that Azahari and his companions were assembling bombs and were planning to launch attacks on Christmas Eve ... I want the public to remain alert because the terrorists usually select special religious events to launch their attacks," said Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI) chairman Rev. Andreas Yewangoe.
Meanwhile, National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Aryanto Boedihardjo said that the police would continue to beef up security around the country despite the confirmed death of Azahari.
"We're tightening security in critical areas of the country, especially those places that require extra tight security, such as public places and other important sites," Aryanto said during a press conference.
Aryanto added that the police, working together with the intelligence services, would make greater efforts to respond to reports from the public indicating the possible whereabouts of the other terrorists, including Top.
"We should not let our guard down even after Azahari's death because he might have recruited his successors before his death, and they might be well equipped to take over from him," he said.
Aryanto did not rule out the possibility that Top might launch a revenge attack for the death of his partner.
Reports have previously said that regions outside Java, such as Maluku and Central Sulawesi, are now the main breeding grounds for new recruits. While Azahari is known for his bomb expertise, Top is expert at recruiting people from poverty-stricken areas.