ABC AUSTRALIA, 18/12/2003 22:51:01
Detained Indonesian students 'linked to al-Qaeda'
Indonesian police have revealed more information about a group of six Indonesian
students deported by Pakistan on suspicion of terror links.
Police say Pakistani authorities have told them the students, including a younger
brother of leading terror suspect Hambali, are linked to the al-Qaeda terrorist network.
The director of the Indonesian police's anti-terrorism desk, Brigadier General Pranowo,
says the students had received military training, including bomb-making.
Police released two of the six on Tuesday, but have not yet declared whether they are
free from suspicion.
The four others are still being detained and questioned.
An Islamabad-based security official earlier said the students were part of a "sleeper
cell" of the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) regional extremist group.
The Indonesian students had been at the Abu Bakar Islamic University in the
Pakistani city of Karachi, and were among a group of 19 Indonesians, Singaporeans
and Malaysians arrested.
Hambali, who has been in US custody since his arrest in Thailand on August 11, is
accused of being al-Qaeda's Asian representative, as well as a leading figure in JI.
18/12/2003 22:51:01 | ABC Radio Australia News
© 2001 Australian Broadcasting Corporation |
