CiKEAS> Old and new faces of Indonesian terror
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/LH20Ae02.html Aug 20, 2010 Old and new faces of Indonesian terror By Clifford McCoy The arrest last week of radical Indonesian cleric Abu Bakar Bashir was the highlight of a government crackdown on Islamic militants following the discovery in February of a training camp in Aceh province. Once regarded as the spiritual leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terror group, Bashir's popularity has wavered in recent years and his position is emblematic of the evolving nature of militant Islam in Southeast Asia. The 72-year-old Bashir was arrested together with his wife and five bodyguards on August 9 while traveling to deliver a sermon in West Java. The arrest came only a day before the start of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and a week before Indonesia's nationally celebrated independence day on August 17. Bashir has denied any involvement with the camp, and even claimed that his arrest was arranged by the United States. Bashir's arrest is the latest in an ongoing crackdown since the discovery of a jihadi training camp in northern Aceh run by a new coalition of militant groups. The training camp was established by seven groups who joined together to form the lintas tanzim, or cross-organizational project. The coalition was led by one of Southeast Asia's most wanted terrorists, Dulmatin, who is also believed to have been one of the leaders of the 2002 Bali bombings that killed over 200 people. Until February, Dulmatin was believed to be in hiding in the Philippines. Analysts and counter-terrorism officials see the group as a new strain of militant Islam in Indonesia. The grouping was highly critical of JI and rejected what it perceived as its overly passive and soft approach to jihad. Members of the new group have also reportedly criticized now deceased Noordin Top's more violent form of terrorism for its lack of long-term direction. Noordin Top masterminded the July 2009 bombings of the JW Marriot and Ritz Carlton hotels in Jakarta, among other bombings, and was killed in a police raid in September 2009. Instead, the new group aims to establish Islamic law across all of Indonesia, and to do so without the collateral killing of fellow Muslims, as happened with JI attacks. According to an April 2010 report by the International Crisis Group (ICG), the new group's enemy has become defined as ''not simply the US or allied countries, but as anyone who obstructed the application of Islamic law - and that meant that many Indonesian officials were high on the list.'' Indonesian authorities say the group was allegedly planning a Mumbai-style attack on luxury hotels in Jakarta frequented by foreigners, as well as several assassinations of high profile public figures, including President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Although the group referred to itself as "al-Qaeda in Aceh", there is so far no evidence of any concrete ties to Osama bin Laden's organization. Since the raid on the camp in February, some 100 members of the group have been captured or killed by police, including Dulmatin. Among those arrested, and only two days before Bashir's arrest, were five suspected terrorists in three different locations in West Java on charges of plotting a car bombing. An explosive device and bomb-making materials were reportedly found in one of the locations. Police claim all five men are members of an organization established by Bashir in 2008 called the Jamaah Ansharut Tauhid (JAT). With Bashir as its alleged chairman, JAT reportedly aims to establish Islamic sharia law across Indonesia. As an above-ground organization, the group largely concentrates on religious outreach, albeit with a distinctly jihadi bent. Combined with Bashir's celebrity status, the group rapidly expanded a nationwide membership in only two years. Bashir's involvement in the organization made it suspect to counter-terrorism officials from the start and this was reinforced by the group's embrace of individuals with known ties to extremist organizations, especially JI and Noordin Top's splinter group. According to ICG, many members of JI either became members of JAT or maintained dual memberships in both organizations. Police claim that many suspected terrorists, captured or killed in the raid on the Aceh camp, have links to JAT. One JAT executive committee member, Lutfi Haedaroh, alias Ubeid, had previously spent time in prison for involvement in Noordin Top's bombing campaign. Ubeid was captured fleeing the Aceh camp in February. A May 6 raid on JAT's offices nabbed three officials charged with providing funds to the training camp. Counter-terrorism officials say Bashir, through JAT, was involved in setting up and providing funding for the Aceh camp and received regular reports from the field. He is also believed to have had a role in appointing operational leaders to the new group. According to ICG, the establishment of the
CiKEAS> Old and new faces of Indonesian terror
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/LH20Ae02.html Aug 20, 2010 Old and new faces of Indonesian terror By Clifford McCoy The arrest last week of radical Indonesian cleric Abu Bakar Bashir was the highlight of a government crackdown on Islamic militants following the discovery in February of a training camp in Aceh province. Once regarded as the spiritual leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terror group, Bashir's popularity has wavered in recent years and his position is emblematic of the evolving nature of militant Islam in Southeast Asia. The 72-year-old Bashir was arrested together with his wife and five bodyguards on August 9 while traveling to deliver a sermon in West Java. The arrest came only a day before the start of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and a week before Indonesia's nationally celebrated independence day on August 17. Bashir has denied any involvement with the camp, and even claimed that his arrest was arranged by the United States. Bashir's arrest is the latest in an ongoing crackdown since the discovery of a jihadi training camp in northern Aceh run by a new coalition of militant groups. The training camp was established by seven groups who joined together to form the lintas tanzim, or cross-organizational project. The coalition was led by one of Southeast Asia's most wanted terrorists, Dulmatin, who is also believed to have been one of the leaders of the 2002 Bali bombings that killed over 200 people. Until February, Dulmatin was believed to be in hiding in the Philippines. Analysts and counter-terrorism officials see the group as a new strain of militant Islam in Indonesia. The grouping was highly critical of JI and rejected what it perceived as its overly passive and soft approach to jihad. Members of the new group have also reportedly criticized now deceased Noordin Top's more violent form of terrorism for its lack of long-term direction. Noordin Top masterminded the July 2009 bombings of the JW Marriot and Ritz Carlton hotels in Jakarta, among other bombings, and was killed in a police raid in September 2009. Instead, the new group aims to establish Islamic law across all of Indonesia, and to do so without the collateral killing of fellow Muslims, as happened with JI attacks. According to an April 2010 report by the International Crisis Group (ICG), the new group's enemy has become defined as ''not simply the US or allied countries, but as anyone who obstructed the application of Islamic law - and that meant that many Indonesian officials were high on the list.'' Indonesian authorities say the group was allegedly planning a Mumbai-style attack on luxury hotels in Jakarta frequented by foreigners, as well as several assassinations of high profile public figures, including President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Although the group referred to itself as "al-Qaeda in Aceh", there is so far no evidence of any concrete ties to Osama bin Laden's organization. Since the raid on the camp in February, some 100 members of the group have been captured or killed by police, including Dulmatin. Among those arrested, and only two days before Bashir's arrest, were five suspected terrorists in three different locations in West Java on charges of plotting a car bombing. An explosive device and bomb-making materials were reportedly found in one of the locations. Police claim all five men are members of an organization established by Bashir in 2008 called the Jamaah Ansharut Tauhid (JAT). With Bashir as its alleged chairman, JAT reportedly aims to establish Islamic sharia law across Indonesia. As an above-ground organization, the group largely concentrates on religious outreach, albeit with a distinctly jihadi bent. Combined with Bashir's celebrity status, the group rapidly expanded a nationwide membership in only two years. Bashir's involvement in the organization made it suspect to counter-terrorism officials from the start and this was reinforced by the group's embrace of individuals with known ties to extremist organizations, especially JI and Noordin Top's splinter group. According to ICG, many members of JI either became members of JAT or maintained dual memberships in both organizations. Police claim that many suspected terrorists, captured or killed in the raid on the Aceh camp, have links to JAT. One JAT executive committee member, Lutfi Haedaroh, alias Ubeid, had previously spent time in prison for involvement in Noordin Top's bombing campaign. Ubeid was captured fleeing the Aceh camp in February. A May 6 raid on JAT's offices nabbed three officials charged with providing funds to the training camp. Counter-terrorism officials say Bashir, through JAT, was involved in setting up and providing funding for the Aceh camp and received regular reports from the field. He is also believed to have had a role in appointing operational leaders to the new group. According to ICG, the establishment of the camp is i
