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.