RI men held in RP 'not linked to JI'

RI men held in RP 'not linked to JI'

Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Two Indonesians being detained in the Philippines are not
connected with recent bomb attacks in this country despite
allegedly being members of the regional terror group Jamaah
Islamiyah (JI), the National Police say.

National Police Chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said he was aware of
the capture of the two men but said there was no evidence he knew
of connecting them with any regional terrorist groups operating
here.

"We have examined our files and found no relation between them
and the attacks here at all," Da'i said on Friday.

Mohammed Yusop Karim Faiz and Mohammad Nasir Hamid, along with
Malaysian Mohammed Ted Yolanda and an alleged member of the
Filipino Muslim militant group Abu Sayyaf, were arrested by the
Philippine authorities in December in the southern port city of
Zamboanga and were allegedly planning to attack an airport,
shopping malls, a church and U.S. soldiers in the Philippines.

Charges of illegal firearms, explosive use and violation of
immigration laws have been filed against the three men, allowing
their continued detention more than two months after their
arrest, AFP said.

Abu Sayyaf is accused of involvement in kidnapping-for-ransom
scams and bomb attacks against Christians and foreigners in the
Philippines for over a decade.

The group has also been blamed for the bombing of a ferry in
Manila Bay last year that led to more than 100 deaths -- the
deadliest terrorist attack in the country.

A Philippine senior police intelligence officer had said the
four men being detained were JI members.

"They are members of the Jamaah Islamiyah who came to the
country to bring funds to support the bombing operations in key
cities in Mindanao and Metro Manila," said Chief Superintendent
Ismael Rafanan.

The police seized US$7,000 in cash from the suspects along
with two pistols, a video of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden,
books and other materials for bomb-making including mobile
phones, detonating cords and blasting caps.

The Al-Qaeda-linked JI has been blamed for a string of
bombings in Indonesia, including the Bali blasts in 2002, JW
Marriott Hotel attack in Jakarta in 2003 and the bombing outside
the Australian Embassy in the city last year.

Police here have two JI operatives -- Azahari bin Husin and
Mohd. Noordin Top -- on their most-wanted list for masterminding
of those bombings.

Da'i said the Philippine authorities have promised to grant
access to the Indonesian police to cross examine the two
Indonesian suspects.

"We'll send an anti-terror team to the Philippines to monitor
the investigation as soon as they grant the access," Da'i said.

Another Indonesian, Agus Dwikarna, is serving a 11-year jail
term in the Philippines for smuggling explosives into the country
in 2001.

In October 2003, Philippine troops shot dead an Indonesian
national, Fathur Rohman Al-Ghozi, a terrorist suspect who escaped
from prison earlier that year. Al-Ghozi was serving a 17-year
sentence for illegal possession of explosives.