http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/ex-guerilla-to-head-jakarta-mujahedeen/360006

February 22, 2010 
Farouk Arnaz

 
Abdullah Achmad Sungkar is a known past associate of radical cleric Abu Bakar 
Bashir. (AFP Photo/Adek Berry)

Ex-Guerilla to Head Jakarta Mujahedeen

In an atmosphere of fiery rhetoric, the son-in-law of Solo-born Abdullah Achmad 
Sungkar, who helped create regional terror group Jemaah Islamiyah, has been 
elected to lead the Greater Jakarta branch of the Indonesian Mujahedeen 
Council. 

Syawal Yasin, who in 1986 was one of the first Indonesians sent to a mujahedeen 
training camp on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, said on Saturday that he was 
ready to lead the hard-line organization, also known as the MMI. 

"God willing, I am ready to accept this position. I will sacrifice my life to 
uphold the name of Islam," Syawal said during his inauguration at a meeting of 
the group at the Bekasi Sports Hall. 

The father of 13 added that he hoped his experiences in Afghanistan, where he 
stayed for more than 10 years, would prove useful in leading the MMI in 
Jakarta. 

The controversial MMI was founded and once led by extremist preacher Abu Bakar 
Bashir, once dubbed the spiritual leader of JI, who was convicted in 2005 of 
conspiracy over the 2002 Bali bombings. Sentenced to 2-1/2 years in prison, the 
charges against him were dropped in 2006. 

A long-time ally of Abdullah, Bashir left the MMI in 2008 expressing 
dissatisfaction with fellow members. 

The election of Syawal is seen by observers as a way for the MMI to assert its 
continued relevance. 

Abu Jibriel, MMI deputy chairman, on Saturday called on followers gathered at 
the hall to continue pushing for Islamic law. 

"It is our obligation to implement Shariah law based on the Koran and what the 
Prophet Muhammad said, including waging a holy war against Islam's enemies," 
Abu Jibriel said, adding that Shariah law outweighed obligations to the state. 

"Only Shariah law matters. We must work toward its implementation, even if it 
means sacrificing ourselves," Abu Jibriel said, to cries of "Allahu akbar!" 
("God is great!") from the 700 MMI followers in attendance. 

Abu Jibriel is the father of Muhammad Jibriel Abdul Rahman, a suspect currently 
being detained over the July 17 hotel bombings in Jakarta. 

Noor Huda Ismail, a security analyst and terrorism expert, said Syawal's 
elevation was a "show of force" on the part of Abu Jibrel and his younger 
brother, Irfan S Awwas, another senior member of the MMI. 

"Both want to show Bashir that even without him, the MMI can still exist and 
thrive," he said. "They are able to lobby an ex-fighter from Afghanistan. Don't 
forget that Syawal is the son-in-law of Abdullah Sungkar." 

Bashir founded the MMI in 2000 but left to found Anshorut Tauhid in September 
2008, an organization he claims is based on "true" Islamic teachings. At the 
time, he was quoted as saying that the MMI was no longer in line with Islamic 
teachings. 

Abdullah and Bashir founded JI on Jan. 1, 1993, in Malaysia after having fled 
Indonesia to escape prosecution under the Suharto regime. They both had links 
to the Darul Islam, a radical group that clashed with the central government in 
the 1950s. 

JI's goal was to create a Islamic caliphate covering Indonesia, Malaysia, the 
southern Philippines, Singapore, Brunei and southern Thailand.




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