http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/terrorist-switch-in-west-java-bombing/story-e6frg6so-1226039992953
Terrorist switch in West Java bombing Peter Alford, Jakarta correspondent From: The Australian April 16, 2011 12:00AM A "TALIBAN-STYLE" suicide bombing in a West Java police mosque has heightened fears Indonesia's terror groups are switching to domestic attacks. The nail-bomb blast in Cirebon city police mosque, just as Friday prayers began, killed the bomber and wounded 26 people, including police chief Herukoco. Until now, Islamic extremists in Indonesia have set their bombs to kill Westerners in nightclubs, hotels and embassies. Mosque attacks are rare in Indonesia, although an amateurish device was defused in February in the Great Mosque of Cirebon, 160km east of Jakarta. Asked whether the Cirebon bombing represented a change of strategy, Minister for Security and Politics Djoko Suyanto said: "The possibility is there. The most important thing is to find out who is behind this." National Defence Institute analyst Wawan H. Purwanto told The Weekend Australian: "This is a new phenomenon in Indonesia, a Taliban-style attack. "We know this type of mosque bombing usually happens in places like Pakistan, and we need to analyse it carefully." Mr Wawan said the bombing could be the continuation of events that started last year with the break-up of an Aceh terrorist training camp. There followed a violent bank robbery in Medan, allegedly to raise funds for the remnants of the Aceh operation, the arrest of radical cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, police shootings of suspects and the killing of three officers at a station in North Sumatra. Those events, along with attrition among Jemaah Islamiah terror veterans, raised concerns the replacement leaders had refocused their depleted resources on attacking the Indonesian state and its security forces. "Previously, they would target Americans, Australians or any foreigners they consider to be infidels, but this time their target was police officers," said terrorism consultant Noor Huda Ismail. "They believe the police receive foreign aid and Indonesian policies are influenced by the US." Densus 88, the police counter-terrorism unit, is trained and supported by the US and Australia. The mosque bomber and his affiliation remained unidentified last night, but Mr Noor Huda told the Jakarta Globe he assumed an al-Qa'ida-linked group was responsible for the attack. But lawyer Mahendratta, who is defending Abu Bakar Bashir, said "a different kind of perpetrator" was responsible. Mr Mahendratta said last night the people his Muslim lawyers team had defended would never bomb mosques. "This means there is a new group, with a new ideology, not related to the older networks the concept is very different." The Cirebon attack will provoke a severe reappraisal of security at police mosques, which until now have been guarded lightly, if at all, and kept open to public worshippers. Most of those injured yesterday by nails and screws packed around the explosives were police officers. Twenty-one remained in hospital last night. Related Coverage a.. Indonesian suicide bomber wounds 28 Adelaide Now, 10 hours ago b.. Suicide bomber injures 26 at Java mosque The Australian, 1 day ago c.. Evil mastermind of Bali captured The Daily Telegraph, 30 Mar 2011 d.. Police identify book-bomb courier The Australian, 23 Mar 2011 e.. 11 killed in Pakistan mosque blast Adelaide Now, 4 Mar 2011 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Post message: [email protected] Subscribe : [email protected] Unsubscribe : [email protected] List owner : [email protected] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
