German police to help terror probe

German police to help terror probe

JAKARTA: A German police officer has arrived in Jakarta to
help Indonesian investigators question an Arab man held for
possible ties to al-Qaeda, a police spokesman said Friday.

The German officer arrived in Jakarta Wednesday on a mission
to "help our investigation" into the case of Seyam Reda, who
carries a German passport, national police spokesman Insp. Gen.
Saleh Saaf told AFP.

Saleh would not reveal the rank and identity of the visiting
officer.

Indonesian intelligence agents arrested Reda last week for
allegedly violating immigration law by claiming to be a
journalist while using a tourist visa.

Police said Reda also possessed videotapes depicting training
of armed civilian groups in conflict areas in Indonesia.

They said Reda might have information on Omar al-Faruq, named
by U.S. intelligence officials as Southeast Asia's senior
representative of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network, according
to a report in the September 23 edition of Time magazine. -- AFP