Indonesian volunteers trapped in Afghanistan

Indonesian volunteers trapped in Afghanistan

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

JAKARTA: Most of the 300 Indonesian volunteers who went to
Afghanistan remain trapped in Afghanistan territory. Some of them
managed to be pulled back to Pakistan following the fall of the
Taliban in Kabul and other provinces, an organizer of the group
said on Thursday.

After the defeat of the Taliban in Kabul, Suaib Didu, Chairman
of the Islamic Youth Movement (GPI) here said that he had
received reports from his colleagues in the conflict areas that a
small group of volunteers under GPI coordination managed to flee
from the melee in several areas throughout Afghanistan and
arrived well and safe in Pakistan territory.

"From our latest contacts, I learned that 50 volunteers had
entered Pakistan safely. 120 others were stranded in border areas
and the rest are still working with the Taliban inside
Afghanistan," Suaib told The Jakarta Post.

"We still have contact with the Taliban and local officials to
search for their exact whereabouts," Suaib asserted.

GPI was the organization that recruited the Indonesian
volunteers to wage war against the U.S. and its allies in
Afghanistan after the U.S. threat to strike Afghanistan which was
accused of harboring Osama bin Laden, the prime suspect in the
Sept. 11 terror attacks in the U.S.

Suaib claimed that none of the volunteers under GPI
coordination died during the U.S.-led bombardment of Afghanistan.
According to Suaib, there were a total of 300 Indonesian
volunteers deployed in Afghanistan. They infiltrated Afghanistan
2 weeks after the U.S. and its allies began the strike on Oct. 7.

Suaib added that some of them preferred to remain there, in
hopes of joining Indonesia's (possible) UN peacekeeping
contingent in Afghanistan, while others wished to return to
Indonesia.