Muslim nations need to 'unite against extremists'

Muslim nations need to 'unite against extremists'

Associated Press, Jakarta

This month's suicide bombings on Indonesia's Bali island are a reminder that Muslim nations must unite against extremists "who are distorting the teachings of Islam," Jordan's King Abdullah II said.

He made the remark during a visit to Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.

Militants have launched several attacks in Indonesia and Jordan in recent years. Both Abdullah and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono have been heralded in the West as champions of religious moderation.

"We reaffirmed the importance of working together to defeat the scourge of terrorism that Indonesia and Jordan have suffered," Abdullah told reporters at a joint news conference after meeting with Susilo on Wednesday night.

"The malicious attacks in Bali are a reminder that we need to unite in the struggle to defeat ignorant extremists who distort the teaching of Islam," he said.

The Oct. 1 bombings at three crowded restaurants on the resort island killed 23 people, including three attackers. Officials have blamed the al-Qaeda-linked Jamaah Islamiyah terror network, also accused in three other terror attacks in Indonesia since 2002.

Susilo said Indonesia was working to empower liberal Islamic leaders to deprive militants of support, as well stepping up police and intelligence efforts to smash their networks.

"We want to maintain the moderate forces of our social life," Susilo said. "We are doing this, but it is an unfinished agenda."

More than 80 percent of Indonesia's 220 million people are Muslims. Most practice a broadly tolerant version of the faith, colored by remnants of Hindu and animist rituals, which predate Islam in the archipelago.