The Sydney Morning Herald, February 23, 2006 - 1:39PM
JI cells plotting attacks: Indonesia
The Jemaah Islamiah terror network survived the death of its master bomb-maker last
year, and is now splintered into independent cells which continue to recruit suicide
bombers in Indonesia, a confidential government report says.
The document by the country's intelligence agency, a copy of which was obtained by
The Associated Press, says senior figures in the organisation have "ongoing links"
with fellow militants in Afghanistan, the Philippines and Thailand as well as those in
jail inside Indonesia.
Jemaah Islamiah, which once had cells throughout Southeast Asia and allegedly
received funding from al-Qaeda, is blamed in a score of bloody bombings and failed
plots in the region, including five suicide bombings in Indonesia that together killed
more than 240 people.
Authorities have arrested scores of the group's operatives in the last four years, and in
November police killed Azahari Husin, a top leader who allegedly made many of the
bombs used in the attacks, during a raid on his hideout.
The report said that after Azahari's death, Jemaah Islamiah went further underground,
forming small cells of terrorists comprising mostly of young people recruited through
Islamic study groups.
The cells are called "Thaifah Mansurah" (or Winning Team), and operate
independently, according to the confidential 33-page document, which was drafted
earlier this month.
"'Thaifah Mansurah' are the main resource for JI when it is looking for suicide
bombers," the report said.
Noordin Top, the group's alleged operational chief and head recruiter, remains at large.
Nasir Abbas, who was a key Jemaah Islamiah operative until his arrest in 2003, said
the new, loose structure of the group would make it even harder for police to track
down Noordin.
"If police caught a regional head, it's unlikely he could identify other members of the
group, or reveal the whereabouts of Noordin," said Abbas, who now works with
authorities.
Azahari and Noordin allegedly played key roles in the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings
which killed 202 mostly foreign tourists, including 88 Australians, attacks in the
capital Jakarta in 2003 and 2004 that together killed 21, and triple suicide bombings
on three crowded restaurants on Bali in October that killed 20.
© 2006 AAP
Copyright © 2005. The Sydney Morning Herald.
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