Malaysia detains terror suspect Hambali's wife under new law
Malaysia detains terror suspect Hambali's wife under new law
Agencies, Kuala Lumpur/Bangkok/Manila
Malaysia is holding the wife of top terror suspect Hambali under a security law which allows detention without trial, Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said on Monday.
"We think Hambali's wife has useful information for us. She is certainly important as far as we are concerned," Abdullah said.
Hambali's Malaysian wife, Noralwizah Lee Abdullah, was handed over to police here after being arrested with her husband in Thailand last week.
Police chief Norian Mai said her interrogation had begun.
The deputy prime minister told the official Bernama news agency she was being held under the Internal Security Act (ISA), which allows indefinite detention without trial.
Dozens of alleged members of Hambali's Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) terror network are already jailed here under the ISA.
Abdullah said the focus now was to capture two Malaysian militants, Azahari Husin and Noordin Muhammad Top, who are believed to be JI bomb-makers.
Azahari, a 45-year-old former Malaysian university lecturer, is alleged to be the organization's top explosives expert, and is suspected of involvement in last year's Bali bombings and the attack on the Marriott Hotel in Jakarta earlier this month.
"We are looking for them. Indonesia is also looking for them. They can be anywhere. In Southeast Asia or outside the region," Abdullah said.
Hambali, an Indonesian who was born Riduan Isamuddin, married Noralwizah when he lived in Malaysia, where he had permanent residence status, after returning from fighting in the anti- Soviet campaign in Afghanistan from 1987 until 1991.
He is the alleged operational chief of the al-Qaeda-linked JI terror network blamed for the Bali bombings which killed more than 200 people and a string of other bloody attacks in Asia.
He is said to be in the custody of the United States after his capture in Thailand, but his whereabouts have not been revealed.
Local media reported on Monday that Malaysia had joined Indonesia in seeking permission from the U.S. to question Hambali.
Deputy home minister Zainal Abidin Zin told The Star newspaper Malaysia wanted to interrogate him because they believed the militant's activities affected the country's security.
Indonesian officials said Hambali was involved in blasts in seven Indonesian cities, and they too hoped to gain access to the detained suspect in an effort to prevent further terror attacks.
U.S. President George W. Bush has pledged to share information from the U.S.-led interrogation with Indonesia.
In a separate development, U.S. President George W. Bush has confirmed he will attend a Pacific summit in Bangkok in October even though alleged terror chief Hambali had been planning to attack the meeting before his arrest, Thailand said on Monday.
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said Thailand would do its utmost to ensure the safety of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting which will bring together 21 world leaders.
"I have had a conversation with President Bush over the telephone, he thanked me and said he appreciated Thailand's cooperation in working to wipe out terrorism and he said he looked forward to coming here," he told reporters.
"As the host country we have to do our utmost (to maintain security)."
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage warned on Sunday that the APEC meeting was still at risk despite Hambali's arrest in the central city of Ayutthaya a week ago.
Thaksin has said the attack was intended to target U.S. interests in Thailand, and that Hambali's followers had inspected U.S. sites as well as APEC meeting venues in an operation planned and paid for by Hambali.
The premier has also insisted that with the capture of the top leader of the Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) terror network, who is also an ally of al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, the group has been completely wiped out in the kingdom.
On Monday he rejected a report in the Bangkok Post that five of Hambali's followers were still at large in and around Bangkok.
"I want to reject the report that more JI members are still planning an action in Thailand," he said.
Philippine police said on Monday they were also in talks with officials in Thailand about the possibility of putting alleged terror mastermind Hambali on trial for deadly bomb attacks in Manila three years ago.
Chief Supt. Arturo Lomibao, national police intelligence director, said Hambali has been charged for his alleged involvement in bombings that killed 22 people in Manila on Dec. 30, 2000, and an arrest warrant has been issued.
The United States will allow Australia to provide questions for interrogators grilling alleged terror mastermind, Hambali, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said on Monday.
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