'Extremists' arrested

'Extremists' arrested

BANJARNEGARA, Central Java: Police have arrested seven people
accused of trying to turn Indonesia into an Islamic state.

Deputy chief of the Banjarnegara Police precinct Maj. Giran
Abdul Djalil said the men were members of the Indonesian Islamic
State (NII) extremist group.

Hailing from Yogyakarta, Purwokerto and Kebumen, they were
targeting uneducated villagers for their political propaganda, he
said. The group had spent about five months getting villagers to
support their campaign, before they were arrested.

He said most of the suspects claimed to be students of various
state universities in Java. They posed as clothes hawkers to
elude the authorities and disguise their activity.

"They considered Indonesia 'dead' and believed it had to be
revived as an Islamic state," he was quoted by Antara as saying.
(pan)