WORLD> Asia-Pacific
|
WORLD> Asia-Pacific
|
|
Indonesia says to execute Bali bombers in early Nov
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-10-24 20:32 Instead of pushing Indonesia to cut ties with countries such as the United States and Australia, the attacks seem to have deepened them. The Bali bombings, and other attacks on the island and in the capital Jakarta, helped push Indonesia into a closer security relationship with Washington and Canberra as the government sought help in tackling Islamist militants. Although there have been no major bomb attacks since 2005, Indonesia is still considered at risk. In his annual address to parliament on August 15, President Yudhoyono warned that the "country is still unsafe from terrorist acts." The Indonesian anti-terrorist unit, Detachment 88, was involved in a series of raids last year that authorities say netted the heads of JI and its military wing. The police detained 10 suspected militants in Sumatra in July, as well as a large cache of bombs. Another five men suspected of planning to blow up an oil storage facility in the capital were detained in raids in Jakarta and Bogor, West Java, this week. Indonesian police chief Bambang Hendarso Danuri told journalists separately on Friday that militant groups were now targeting government officials and vital infrastructure. Police are still seeking Noordin Top, a Malaysian considered a key figure behind a series of bombings, including a second set of blasts in Bali in 2005 that killed more than 20 people. Some analysts say Top might have set up a splinter group. Some other top JI figures are also believed to be in the southern Philippines, including Umar Patek and Dulmatin, suspects in the 2002 Bali bombs. |
