Indonesia arrests 11 suspects over planned attacks on embassies

[W.G.Ewald]

Indonesia arrests 11 suspects over planned attacks on U.S., Australian embassies - Israel News | Haaretz Daily Newspaper

Indonesia's anti-terror squad arrested 11 people suspected of planning a range of attacks on domestic and foreign targets including the U.S. and Australian embassies, police said Saturday.

The suspects were arrested in raids Friday and Saturday in four provinces, national police spokesman Maj. Gen. Suhardi Aliyus said.

He said the suspects belonged to a new group called the Sunni Movement for Indonesian Society, or HASMI.

Police seized a number of bombs, explosive materials, a bomb-making manual and ammunition, Aliyus said.

He said the group had plans to target the U.S. embassy in Jakarta and a plaza near the Australian embassy and the local office of U.S. mining giant Freeport-McMoRan. It also planned to attack the U.S. consulate in Surabaya and the headquarters of a police special force in Central Java, he said. It was unclear how far the plans had advanced.

Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation, has been battling terrorists since the 2002 bombings in Bali by militants linked to the Southeast Asian network Jemaah Islamiyah, which killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists.

 

[Tshering22]

It is very scary to see tendencies of terrorism emerging in otherwise peaceful southeast Asian countries.

It is unfortunate but the roots of terrorism once again are seen to be emerging from an Islamic foundation, once again confirming fears of organized religions' tendency towards militant activities against other faiths or non-religious communities.