Sparrowhawk
10-16-02, 07:22 PM
The Financial Times reports that "the spiritual leader of the Islamist group suspected of responsibility for the bombings in Bali was backed by a Saudi who gave $74,000 . . . to buy explosives, a top al-Qaeda detainee has told US interrogators.
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Saudi link to Bali blast, says al-Qaeda prisoner
By Mark Huband
Published: October 15 2002 22:04 | Last Updated: October 15 2002 22:04
The spiritual leader of the Islamist group suspected of responsibility for the bombings in Bali was backed by a Saudi who gave $74,000 (£47,700) to buy explosives, a top al-Qaeda detainee has told US interrogators.
Omar al-Faruq, an al-Qaeda-trained Kuwaiti arrested in Indonesia in June, is being held by US forces in Afghanistan. He has told US interrogators that the spiritual leader of the Jemaah Islamiah, Abu Bakr Bashir, was sent the money earlier this year.
<b>The explosives were bought from Indonesian army officers</b> who sold the material illegally, Mr al-Faruq has said. Part of the cache may have been used in the Bali bombings which killed nearly 200 people at the weekend, said Rohan Gunaratna, a regional terrorism expert who has seen the US interrogation report.
Traces of the military explosive C4 were detected in the ruins in the Balinese resort of Kuta, Indonesia's intelligence chief, Hendropriyono, said.
Indonesian police were questioning two Indonesian men on Tuesday over the bombings. One of the detainees has said he was at the scene of the Kuta attack while the other is related to a man whose identity card was found in the wreckage.
According to the report of Mr al-Faruq's interrogation, Mr Abu Bakr sent an assistant to buy the weapons and explosives. The consignment was shipped to the Islamist stronghold of Ambon, western Indonesia. There, said Mr Gunaratna, it was split between different Islamist groups.
http://sg.yimg.com/xp/reuters/20020425/1410236449.jpg
"Abu Bakr Bashir is not only a political, spiritual and ideological leader, but also has a significant operational role in JI," Mr Gunaratna said. Mr Abu Bakr has vigorously denied ties with JI, and on Tuesday condemned the Bali bombings as a "brutal act" which he blamed on the US. He has spoken favourably of al-Qaeda and has had close ties with Riduan Isammudin, a confidant of Osama bin Laden.
Mr Abu Bakr is accused by Singapore and Malaysia of involvement in JI terrorist plots, but Indonesia has always said it has insufficient evidence to act against him.
Additional reporting by Shawn Donnan in Jakarta
<hr>
<hr>
Saudi link to Bali blast, says al-Qaeda prisoner
By Mark Huband
Published: October 15 2002 22:04 | Last Updated: October 15 2002 22:04
The spiritual leader of the Islamist group suspected of responsibility for the bombings in Bali was backed by a Saudi who gave $74,000 (£47,700) to buy explosives, a top al-Qaeda detainee has told US interrogators.
Omar al-Faruq, an al-Qaeda-trained Kuwaiti arrested in Indonesia in June, is being held by US forces in Afghanistan. He has told US interrogators that the spiritual leader of the Jemaah Islamiah, Abu Bakr Bashir, was sent the money earlier this year.
<b>The explosives were bought from Indonesian army officers</b> who sold the material illegally, Mr al-Faruq has said. Part of the cache may have been used in the Bali bombings which killed nearly 200 people at the weekend, said Rohan Gunaratna, a regional terrorism expert who has seen the US interrogation report.
Traces of the military explosive C4 were detected in the ruins in the Balinese resort of Kuta, Indonesia's intelligence chief, Hendropriyono, said.
Indonesian police were questioning two Indonesian men on Tuesday over the bombings. One of the detainees has said he was at the scene of the Kuta attack while the other is related to a man whose identity card was found in the wreckage.
According to the report of Mr al-Faruq's interrogation, Mr Abu Bakr sent an assistant to buy the weapons and explosives. The consignment was shipped to the Islamist stronghold of Ambon, western Indonesia. There, said Mr Gunaratna, it was split between different Islamist groups.
http://sg.yimg.com/xp/reuters/20020425/1410236449.jpg
"Abu Bakr Bashir is not only a political, spiritual and ideological leader, but also has a significant operational role in JI," Mr Gunaratna said. Mr Abu Bakr has vigorously denied ties with JI, and on Tuesday condemned the Bali bombings as a "brutal act" which he blamed on the US. He has spoken favourably of al-Qaeda and has had close ties with Riduan Isammudin, a confidant of Osama bin Laden.
Mr Abu Bakr is accused by Singapore and Malaysia of involvement in JI terrorist plots, but Indonesia has always said it has insufficient evidence to act against him.
Additional reporting by Shawn Donnan in Jakarta