Terrorists may soon strike again: Police

Terrorists may soon strike again: Police

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Police issued a fresh warning on Wednesday asking operators and
owners of buildings in the capital to beware of possible
terrorist attacks, adding that terrorists might strike again
soon.

A top police officer familiar with the investigation into
terrorism in Indonesia told The Jakarta Post and Kompas dailies
that building managements should be on alert as "the attacks
could be carried out any time."

"It is of paramount importance, and necessary for building
managements, policemen and the public to be on alert as terrorist
suspects Dr. Azahari and Noordin M. Top are still at large and
may launch another attack at any time," the one-star police
general said, asking to remain anonymous.

He was referring to Malaysian citizen terrorist suspects,
known for their expertise in rigging bombs like those that
exploded in Legian, Bali, on Oct. 12 last year and the car bomb
that ripped through the lobby of JW Marriott Hotel, Jakarta, on
Aug. 5.

Azahari and Noordin managed to evade a police dragnet after
the police managed to capture Marriott bombing suspects Thohir
and Ismail, in Cirebon, West Java.

The officer showed a list of targets written on a note in
Asmar Latin Sani's handwriting. Asmar was the one who allegedly
blew himself up, along with the Marriott bomb. The note was
discovered in Azahari's rented rooms on Jl. Kebon Kembang,
Bandung, West Java.

Among the targets were Citibank Landmark, Setiabudi (South
Jakarta), Citibank Pondok Indah (South Jakarta), the Caltex
office, Kebon Jeruk (West Jakarta), residences of expatriates in
Kemang (South Jakarta), Hero shopping center in Kemang (South
Jakarta), Kem Chicks, Kemang (South Jakarta), JW Marriott Hotel
(South Jakarta) and international schools, including Jakarta
International School and the Australian International School.

The officer asserted that the locations could still become
possible targets for another terrorist attack, recounting the
previous experience of the Marriott bombing.

"The police already knew that Asmar would commit a suicide
bombing as we intercepted an e-mailed message he sent to Toni
Togar (another terrorist suspect arrested in Bengkulu) on April
19, saying that he was prepared for a suicide bombing.
Unfortunately, he simply detonated the bomb at a time that we had
not expected," he said.

Asked about the possibility that Azahari and Noordin had
managed to enter Jakarta despite an intensive and massive police
manhunt across the country, he said, "It's possible. We have no
clue at all about their whereabouts right now."

He added that both suspects might have recruited new people to
launch further attacks.

"Remember -- while they were on the run after the Bali
bombings, they were still capable of launching another attack on
the Marriott," he said.