Two bomb-laden backpacks seized

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The National Police said on Friday they were tracking down four men who fled their home, including one who was wounded, after a small blast at a rented house in Cianjur regency, West Java.

The men were also believed to be the owners of two backpacks of explosive devices found by the police at the house in Cicurug village, about 80 kilometers southwest of Jakarta, after the explosion at around 8:30 p.m. on Thursday.

"There was an explosion in a rented house in Cianjur. Four people who rented the house ran away after they told local residents that the blast came from a gas stove. But after we checked we found that it came a small bomb. We later found two backpacks of active explosive devices there," said National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said.

He could not confirm whether the four people in question were fugitive terror suspects Dr. Azahari bin Husin and Noordin Mohd. Top and their followers.

Azahari and Noordin are believed by police to be the masterminds of the 2002 Bali bombings, the 2003 JW Marriott Hotel attack and last month's deadly suicide-bombing at the Australian Embassy.

The two have reportedly recruited several new suicide bombers, including those who carried out the blast outside the Embassy in Jakarta on Sept. 9, which killed 10 people, police say.

Da'i said that one of the four men fled from a nearby clinic after being treated there for injuries in the explosion at the rented house.

The police chief did not rule out the possibility that the group was linked to Azahari and Noordin, and that the suspects were still somewhere near Cianjur.

Separately, National Police chief of detectives Suyitno Landung Sudjono said that apart from injuring one of the four men, the explosion also damaged a wall and some furniture.

The police officers were now hunting for the four suspects to find out what they really intended to do with the explosives, he added.

"We are also examining whether the explosives are similar with those used for the bombing at the Australian Embassy," Suyitno said.

Police had earlier warned the public that Azahari and Noordin and their group, remained dangerous because they were thought to have at least 200 kilograms of explosives in their possession.

Suyitno, however, could not confirm the weight of the explosives found at the rented house or whether they were of the same chemical base as that which Azahari and Noordin supposedly possess.

Besides Azahari and Noordin, the police are still hunting down at least 10 other suspects in the Sept. 9 attack, including Hasan, Jibril, Rois and Igun.

The hunt is being focused on West Java, the police added.

They have already nabbed eight suspects in the latest terror attack blamed on al-Qaeda-linked terror network Jamaah Islamiyah, and identified Heri Golun as the sole suicide bomber.