Three alleged terrorists flown to Bali
Three alleged terrorists flown to Bali
The Jakarta Post/Semarang/Bandung
Three Islamic militants believed to be members of terrorist cells
linked to killed bomber Azahari bin Husin were transferred on
Wednesday to Bali from Semarang as part of police efforts to shed
light into their possible roles in recent terror attacks.
The three men captured last week in Semarang city were
identified as Cholily alias Yahya, Anif Solchanudin and Abdul
Azis.
Cholily, who was nabbed on Wednesday, is believed to be a
follower of Azahari. His arrest led to the police raid a day
later on a house in Batu, Malang that led to Azahari's death.
The two other suspected militants were captured on the same
day but their roles in Azahari's network are still sketchy.
Bali Police spokesman Reniban said the three alleged
terrorists would be questioned soon over the Bali bombings on
Oct. 1, which killed 23 people, including three suicide bombers.
Police would also grill them over their roles in the Bali attacks
in 2002, which killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists.
Police sources said during their stay in Semarang, the three
men were believed to have been plotting more bombings in the
country, possibly with the cooperation of Azahari associate
Noordin M. Top, who is still at large.
Noordin and Azahari are two key members of the Jamaah
Islamiyah (JI) terror network, which is pursuing a Pan Islamic
state in Southeast Asia and is linked to Al Qaeda.
The two Malaysian nationals are blamed for masterminding
string of bombings in Indonesia during the past few years,
including the Bali attacks, the JW Marriott Hotel bombing in 2003
and Australian Embassy bombing last year, the last two both in
Jakarta.
Throughout the country, police continued to search for men
believed to be connected with JI.
In Semarang, police arrested two more people believed to
posses information as to the whereabouts of Azahari's group. They
are Agung Pramono and Iwan Cahyono, who police believe to be
business colleagues of Dwi Widyarto, an alleged member of
Azahari's network.
In Bangkalan regency, Madura island, police had for the past
three days been briefing gatherings of Muslim leaders about the
police's hunt for the terrorists and asking them for help. Madura
island is close to East Java, home to many of the terrorists who
perpetrated the Bali bombings, such as convicted bomber Imam
Samudra.
In Bandung, police continued combing several areas thought to
be sanctuaries for JI terrorists, including houses on the border
between the Bandung and Cianjur regencies. No arrests have been
made, as yet.