Police to check Hambali's identity

STABAT, North Sumatra: Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said he would soon check the citizenship of Hambali, the alleged terror suspect.

Da'i made the statement after inaugurating a police station in Langkat district on Sunday.

A Thai official has claimed that Hambali had actually acquired Spanish nationality.

Riduan Isamuddin alias Hambali was arrested in an apartment building in the ancient Thai temple city of Ayutthaya last week.

He is reportedly being held in US government custody for further questioning.

Da'i further said he would also meet US Ambassador to Indonesia Ralph Boyce to discuss Hambali's arrest and custody.

"We will push for him to be questioned in Indonesia. But we have yet to know what his nationality is; whether the document he uses is official or fake," he added.

Hambali is wanted by several countries over his alleged involvement in bomb attacks, including in Indonesia, the United States, and the Philippines.

The US government has accused Hambali of being the operational chief of the so-called Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), a group allegedly linked to al-Qaeda.

He has also been blamed for the Oct. 12, 2002 bomb blasts in Bali, which killed more than 200 people and injured over 300 others. -- Antara