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Interpol hunts for terror leader

Interpol said that it has issued a worldwide security alert following the escape of the alleged leader of an Islamic terror group from a jail in Singapore.

The international police organization said on Friday it put out an "Orange Notice" for Mas Selamat Kastari, a suspected commander of the al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah's Singapore arm.

Mas Selamat, a 47-year-old who is accused of once plotting to hijack an airplane and crash it into Singapore's international airport, escaped from a detention center on Wednesday.

The Interpol notice was issued to the group's 186 national member bureaus following a request by Singapore, the agency said.

"When it comes to escapes, the first hours are crucial," said Jean-Michel Louboutin, Interpol's executive director of police services.

"The state of Singapore has put into operation everything that's needed to be done. It's a small country, so it's easy to cross and leave," he said.

Louboutin said authorities have "no trail for the moment."

Mas Selamat is "someone who presents a potential physical danger to others, but also a potential danger by organizing future bombings," he said.

The government said Mas Selamat escaped because of a "security lapse" at the detention center. He had been taken from his cell to a room where he was waiting for his family to make a scheduled visit. He escaped after being granted permission to visit the washroom, authorities said.

Singaporean authorities have launched a nationwide manhunt for the fugitive they say walks with a limp.

Police and military personnel set up a blockade around the detention center, while security was tightened at land, air and sea entry ports.

Security breaches are virtually unheard of in Singapore. Among its biggest successes were pre-empting alleged plots to bomb the US embassy, the American Club and government buildings in 2001 -- schemes in which Mas Selamat allegedly had a hand.
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