The Jakarta Post, 3/22/2006 4:01:17 PM
Young militant seen as taking over JI: Top detective
JAKARTA (AP): A young militant trusted by al-Qaida is now in charge of Southeast
Asia's regional terror group Jemaah Islamiyah, which remains dangerous despite more
than 270 arrests since 2000, a top detective said.
Abu Dujana trained in Afghanistan with Hambali, a key regional militant now in U.S.
custody, and is known to be a "talented leader," according to Petrus Reinhard Golose
of Indonesia's counterterrorism task force.
Petrus did not say when Dujana moved up through the ranks of Jemaah Islamiyah,
which is accused in a series of bloody bombings in Southeast Asia in recent years,
including two strikes on Indonesia's resort island of Bali that killed more than 240
people, most of them foreign tourists.
"Abu Dujana is the guy who leads," he said. "He has good relations with al-Qaida and
is trusted." He did not elaborate.
Petrus repeated earlier police statements that Noordin Top, a Malaysian militant
accused of a key role in all the attacks on Indonesian soil, was now working outside
Jemaah Islamiyah and had declared himself to be al-Qaida's representative in
SoutheastAsia.
Even if Noordin were to be arrested, the risk of more attacks would still remain, he
said.
"There are others who are still more dangerous who are active," he told members of
Indonesia's foreign correspondents club, adding police had arrested at least 270
militants since 2000. (**)
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