The Jakarta Post, 12/15/2003 5:23:50 PM
Regional JI commander tells court he was appointed by Ba'asyir
JAKARTA (AFP): A regional commander of the Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) terror network
told a court on Monday that Indonesian Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir had
appointed him to the post.
Nasir Abbas said the elderly cleric had sworn him in as JI's regional chief overseeing
the Malaysian state of Sabah, the southern Philippines and North Sulawesi in
Indonesia.
"I was sworn in by Ustadz (teacher) Abu Bakar Ba'asyir in Solo (Central Java) in 1999
along with 11 other people," Abbas, a Malaysian, told the trial at South Jakarta
district court.
Foreign governments say Ba'asyir headed the al-Qaeda-linked JI, which is blamed for
the Bali bombings and numerous other blasts.
A court in September found no evidence that Ba'asyir was the network's leader.
Abbas, who was arrested in April in Indonesia, said he believed Ba'syir appointed him
in his capacity as JI regional chief. He said he himself had been a JI member for 16
years.
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