Government to deport Sri Lankan terror expert

AMBON, Maluku: Sri Lankan terror expert Rohan Kumar Gunaratna has been handed over to the Indonesian Immigration office and is to be deported back to his base in Singapore.

Maluku police spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. Artsianto Dharmawan said Gunaratna was dispatched to Maluku Immigration office on Friday after he was caught by police in violation of his visa.

Gunaratna, the chief of the Singapore-based Institute of Defense and Strategic Studies, used a tourist visa to enter Maluku when he was researching terrorism in Seram Island, police said.

Ambon Immigration Office chief Sam Lontokan confirmed on Saturday Gunaratna had already been flown to Jakarta en route to Singapore.

Gunaratna, the author of the book Inside Al-Qaeda, Global Network of Terror, is well-known for his research on terrorism and is a regular speaker at international seminars.

He earlier speculated police may have arrested him because they thought he was a terrorist. -- JP