Surakarta Police on alert

Surakarta Police on alert
for anti-U.S. terrorist plans

Yogita Tahilramani
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

The National Police alerted on Monday the Surakarta police
headquarters in Central Java to investigate claims that
terrorists were planning to launch a wave of attacks on U.S.
embassies and businesses in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

"We have alerted the Surakarta police... also Batam and
Surabaya in East Java to check on available data of the men
allegedly involved in the (terrorist) plans as stated in a news
report on Monday," National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Saleh
Saaf told The Jakarta Post.

Citing a 15-page document allegedly found by Indonesian
intelligence officials in Jakarta, Singapore's The Straits Times
newspaper reported on Monday that three terrorist hit squads were
planning to blow up U.S. embassies in Singapore, Malaysia and
Indonesia with bombs made from C-4 military explosives.

The names of the men, who are allegedly involved directly in
the planning, have been identified as Abbas Yahya, Zaenal
Muttaqien, Muhammad Furqon, Abdul Talib, Zulfikar, Zulkarnaen
Subairi, Fajri Al Farizi, Mohammad Yunus and Mohammad Ikram. They
are still at large in Indonesia and presumed to be Indonesians.

The National Police believe that the names are mere aliases.

The report, which was reportedly written in Indonesian and
Arabic and was signed by members of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI),
and also mentioned Fathur Rohman al Ghozy as a player. Fathur is
an Indonesian who was arrested in the Philippines on Jan. 15 on
terrorism charges.

The Strait Times report however did not clarify whether the
Indonesian intelligence officials, who reportedly found the
document, belonged to either the Indonesian Military Intelligence
or the State Intelligence Body.

Singaporean officials thwarted the attacks, reportedly planned
for Dec. 4 last year, and arrested dozens of suspects in Malaysia
and Singapore, the report said.

"We are investigating these claims. The Indonesian Police do
not know about a document stating such plans... give us time. I
have alerted the National Police Intelligence over the matter.
They are looking into it," Saleh said.

In an interview with The Jakarta Post, an Indonesian police
officer had earlier claimed that some members of JI had
reportedly been found to be currently based in Sragen, some 20
kilometers outside of Surakarta in Central Java, but police
immediately retracted their statement the next day.

The 15-page document read that the JI members had reportedly
declared "a holy war," according to the news report.

"It is time for us to engage in a holy war to eradicate the
Jewish 'satans' in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia."

The document claimed Islam was being threatened by "political
and military aggression" following the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks. The JI attacks were planned at a secret meeting held on
Sept. 28. -- more than a week before U.S.-led airstrikes on
Afghanistan started, the report said.

"By hunting Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda, they justify the
murder of children and women in Afghanistan," the document said.

Separately, Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda said on Monday
that Indonesia was determined to fight terrorism and was ready to
take action against any citizen linked to it.

"If there are indications and other evidence, there's no doubt
that the government will take action," Wirayuda told reporters
after a cabinet meeting, as quoted by AFP.

He said the arrest overseas of Indonesians accused of links to
international terrorism would not damage the country's image,
arguing that citizens of other countries including Britain and
the United States were also implicated.