Suspected Terrorists Killed in Indonesia

[Pete]

Suspected Terrorists Killed in Indonesia

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124964684846614221.html

"JAKARTA, Indonesia -- Antiterrorism police killed two alleged terrorists and arrested three others suspected of involvement in last month's deadly hotel bombs in Jakarta, a police spokesman said. The nighttime raid on a house near Jakarta uncovered more than 1,000 pounds of explosives, and a car fitted out for another terrorist attack, said Nanan Sukarna, the police spokesman.

Meanwhile, a standoff with terrorists at a house near Temanggung, a town in central Java, a province on Indonesia's main island, which began at 5 p.m. local time on Friday continued on Saturday morning. Police say they believe inside the house was Noordin Mohamed Top, a Malaysian citizen who they say orchestrated the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotel bombings, which killed nine people, including the suicide bombers................."

[BRAVO-SMASH]

Aku adalah senang mendengar musuh bertemu tuhan mereka- Im happy to hear that the enemy met with their Allah. Its also good to know that the worlds most populous Muslim nation is against extremism.

[frostfire]

Aku adalah senang mendengar musuh bertemu tuhan mereka- Im happy to hear that the enemy met with their Allah. Its also good to know that the worlds most populous Muslim nation is against extremism.

Concur.

Don't want to come across as nitpicking...but I hope this yields benefits in the long run.
The use of "adalah" in "aku adalah senang" which I assume is an attempt to translate "am" in "I am happy" is incorrect. The correct form is "aku senang." The rest of the sentence is correct and the indigenous won't raise eyebrow or give blank look hearing it. "adalah," which is preceded by person in most usage is always followed by noun i.e. "aku adalah pelaut" or I am a sailor. This is one example of Bahasa Indonesia having "no grammar." As you already know I am sure, too often direct translation does not work when speaking foreign language. HTH

[BRAVO-SMASH]

Concur.

Don't want to come across as nitpicking...but I hope this yields benefits in the long run.
The use of "adalah" in "aku adalah senang" which I assume is an attempt to translate "am" in "I am happy" is incorrect. The correct form is "aku senang." The rest of the sentence is correct and the indigenous won't raise eyebrow or give blank look hearing it. "adalah," which is preceded by person in most usage is always followed by noun i.e. "aku adalah pelaut" or I am a sailor. This is one example of Bahasa Indonesia having "no grammar." As you already know I am sure, too often direct translation does not work when speaking foreign language. HTH

terima kasih untuk pelajaran! Yeah, its been a couple months since I last had an Indonesian conversation with anyone, but I try to keep up online when the bravo course doesn’t have too much of my time. Appreciate the reminder though.

[frostfire]

Suspected Terrorists Killed in Indonesia


http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/08/15/specialreport-seeds-terror-nurtured-teaching-hate-proliferates.html

SpecialReport: Seeds of terror nurtured as teaching of hate proliferates

Sat, 08/15/2009 1:25 PM | Special Report

Indonesia is facing an ongoing struggle against terrorists, their extremist supporters and fi rebrand clerics as counterterror forces move in those linked with the Jakarta hotel bombings. It is becoming evident that extremist Islam, while not supported by the majority in Indonesia, is still treated with a high degree of public permissiveness, complacency from the government and silence by Islamic parties. The Jakarta Post's Rendi Akhmad Witular and Andra Wisnu explore some of the root causes for radical support in Indonesia.

Radical cleric Abubakar Ba'asyir attempted to reignite Islamic extremist sentiments Thursday as he oversaw the hero's welcome for the bodies of deceased terrorists Air Setyawan and Eko Joko Sarjono in Sragen, Central Java.

Hundreds of hard-line Muslims lined the streets to praise the men, who are widely believed to be responsible for the Jakarta hotel bombings on July 17 that killed nine and left dozens wounded.

Before his followers, Abubakar declared Air and Eko as Mujahid (a person involved in Jihad or fi ghting in the name of Islam), which is considered the highest honor to be granted to a Muslim.

Fears are mounting that Abubakar's statements may fuel younger followers of Islam, some of whom are exposed to extremism in their Islamic boarding schools and small prayer groups, to empathize with terrorist ideology.

Efforts to infl uence youngsters with radical ideologies has already been widely reported throughout Indonesia, with certain fi rebrand clerics directing messages of anger at "infi dels" and the Muslims who support them.

"These kind of clerics who encourage violence are undoubtedly helping create future terrorists," said Ansjaad Mbai, head of the counterterrorism desk at the Offi ce of the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs.

"But our society is in general too permissive toward these kinds of teachings, believing an urban legend that terrorism in Indonesia is masterminded by the intelligence services."

The acceptance of such teachings has started to creep into Indonesia's middle class.

A weekly sermon involving housewives in a residential area in Pamulang, Tanggerang - just 5 kilometers from South Jakarta - happily agreed to a request from their clerics to donate money to cover the burial expenses of terrorist Imam Samudra, who was executed in November 2008. The donations were also used for other practices related to the "spread of God's will", which includes Jihad.

These occurrences, however, seem to be ignored by Islamic political parties, notably the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), now the nation's largest Islamic political powerhouse.

Senior offi cials with the PKS historically had links to the nowdefunct Darul Islam movement, which pushed for Indonesia to become an Islamic state. Analysts say the party has so far played little to no role trying to diffuse radical teachings.

"The party should be getting out into society to try and prevent people from becoming involved with radical teachings or movements that lead toward terrorism," said Noor Huda Ismail, founder of the Prasasti Perdamaian Foundation, which engages with former terrorists to try rehabilitate them.

"I have not seen any effort *by PKS* or any other parties or government agencies to actually engaged in the rehabilitation *of terrorists*."

Chairman of the PKS at the House of Representatives, Al Muzzammil Yusuf, claimed the party had made signifi cant gains eradicating radicalism, and insisted terrorism in Indonesia was probably being masterminded by Western intelligence communities.

While other Islamic parties have sent their senior offi cials to visit the victims of the recent attacks on JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton hotels, PKS senior offi cials have kept things low. "I just happen to have not had the chance to visit them *the victims*," said PKS chairman Tiffatul Sembiring.

Ansjaad said political parties were supposed to be helping spearhead counterterrorism by pushing the government to strengthen regulations on terrorism and persuade clerics against delivering hard line sermons.

Yudhoyono, despite declaring terrorism a crime against humanity, has not yet prioritized the establishment of any programs aimed at softening radicalism movements and preventing the emergency of future terrorist sympathizers.

Programs should include measures for identifying potentially radical clerics and for reforming convicted terrorists in prison.

The only steps taken to discourage radicalism and rehabilitate former terrorists have been by the police, the University of Indonesia (UI) and the Prasasti Perdamaian Foundation, but there are not any standard programs in place yet.

Since 2006, UI has carried out research into ways to stamp out radicalism from former terrorists and those serving jail terms, and earlier this year launched a new program trying to dissuade convicted terrorists from future attacks, said noted psychologist Sarlito Wirawan Sarwono, who coordinated the research.

The program is voluntarily and undertaken by 52 former and convicted terrorists. At present there are around 200 former terrorists who have not been approached by this program.

Farihin, a former terrorist and veteran of the Afghanistan war, said the program is held every Tuesday and Thursday at the Muslimin Orphanage House in Senen, Central Jakarta.

The program includes debates and question sessions with Muslim scholars over the meaning of Jihad and other Islamic teachings and laws.

"They *the instructors* can prevent me from committing violence in the name of Islam but not from preaching and upholding the Islamic law," said Farihin, who agreed to join the program under condition that he be allowed to continue preaching for Indonesia to become an Islamic state.

[Ret10Echo]

Police: Terrorism mastermind Noordin Top dead
By IMRON ROSYID, Associated Press Writer Imron Rosyid, Associated Press Writer
1 hr 3 mins ago

SOLO, Indonesia – Noordin Muhammed Top, a militant mastermind who eluded capture for nine years and terrorized Indonesia with a string of deadly al-Qaida-funded bombings, was killed during a raid in central Indonesia, the country's police chief said Thursday.

Police hunting for suspects in Jakarta hotel bombings raided a hide-out in central Indonesia, sparking gunfire and an explosion Thursday that left four suspected militants dead, including Noordin, national police Chief Bambang Hendarso Danuri said. Three alleged terrorists also were captured.

Noordin's remains were found in the house on the outskirts of the town of Solo in central Java after the hours-long gunfight, he said.

Fingerprints of Noordin's stored on a police database matched those of the body, Danuri said. DNA tests have not yet been conducted.

"It is Noordin M. Top," he told a nationally televised news conference to loud cheers from the audience. Documents and laptop computers confiscated from the house prove that Noordin "is the leader of al-Qaida in Southeast Asia," he said.

Hundreds of pounds (kilograms) of explosives, M-16 assault rifles, grenades and bombs were removed from the house as ambulances shuttled away the dead and injured.

"We asked Noordin M. Top to surrender, but they kept firing," Danuri said. "That is how he died ... he even had bullets in his pockets."

Noordin, a Malaysian citizen, fled to Indonesia in 2002 amid a crackdown on Muslim extremists in Malaysia in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States. He was linked to bombings on the Indonesian resort island of Bali in 2002 and 2005 that together killed 222 people, mostly foreigners.

"The most dangerous terrorist in Southeast Asia has been put out of commission," said Jim Della-Giacoma, Southeast Asia project director for the International Crisis Group think tank.

"It would have been better if police had managed to arrest him alive, but it appears that this was not an option," he said. "Unfortunately, Noordin's death does not mean an end to terrorism in Indonesia, though it has been dealt a significant blow."

Noordin, who is accused of heading a splinter group of the al-Qaida-funded regional terror group Jemaah Islamiyah, has been implicated in every major attack in Indonesia since 2003, including a pair of suicide bombings at Jakarta's J.W. Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in July that killed seven people and wounded more than 50.

He is also blamed for an earlier attack on the J.W. Marriott in 2003 and a bombing at the Australian Embassy in 2004.

A counterterrorism official said the militants killed Thursday included alleged bomb-maker Bagus Budi Pranato. The captured militants included a pregnant woman who is being treated at a hospital, national police spokesman Nanan Sukarna said. She was in stable condition.

Police tracked the seven suspects to the town of Solo and besieged a village house on its outskirts overnight. The raid ended near daybreak when an explosion occurred inside the home, Sukarna said.

The operation left behind a charred house with no roof and blown-out walls. The bodies were flown to Jakarta for autopsies.