Indonesian prisons are a weak link in the country's fight against terrorism, with militants often emerging more organized and committed to violence than before they were jailed, a top anti-terror official said yesterday.
General Ansyad Mbai made the remarks on the sidelines of a six-country conference aimed at strengthening cooperation in the fight against terrorism in Southeast Asia, which has seen a string of attacks and failed plots by the al-Qaeda linked Jemaah Islamiyah.
The Australian and Indonesian foreign ministers said states had made progress against Islamic terrorism in the region, but that radicals were continually changing tactics and remained a threat
"We have foiled terrorist plots, captured and prosecuted terrorists and disrupted their networks, but they are still out there," Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said.
"Even as our capacity to stop them improves, their methods and abilities become more sophisticated," he added.
Indonesia has arrested and prosecuted almost 200 militants with direct or supporting roles in attacks in Indonesia.
The deadliest attack on Indonesian soil the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202 people, 88 of them Australian tourists.
Mbai said militants should not be allowed to mix in jail as they do now, saying terror leaders were able to give religious instruction to other terrorists as well as common criminals.
He also noted a recent case in which Indonesian police seized a portable computer from a notorious militant who they said used it to communicate with sympathizers outside the prison.
"The prisoners should be treated specially, they should be split up from one another," Mbai told reporters.
"We must not allow them to become united, stronger and more radical while they are in jail," Mbai added.
Countries represented at the meeting in Jakarta also include the Philippines, which is fighting the Abu Sayyaf Islamic militant group, Thailand, where militants are engaged in a bloody campaign for an Islamic state in the south, and Malaysia and Singapore, which have both locked up scores of militants in recent years.
"We owe it to our citizens to wage an effective battle against terrorism," Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said, adding that more regional cooperation was needed to "counter the clever and seductive propaganda of the terrorists."
Jemaah Islamiyah's core members consist of Indonesians and Malaysians who have fought in Afghanistan.
Though the regional terror network has been damaged by arrests in recent years, police warn that several of its members remain on the run and are likely planning new attacks.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of
A prominent Christian leader has allegedly been stabbed at the altar during a Mass yesterday in southwest Sydney. Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was saying Mass at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley just after 7pm when a man approached him at the altar and allegedly stabbed toward his head multiple times. A live stream of the Mass shows the congregation swarm forward toward Emmanuel before it was cut off. The church leader gained prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic, amassing a large online following, Officers attached to Fairfield City police area command attended a location on Welcome Street, Wakeley following reports a number