-Caveat Lector- Bali bombers 'were trained and sent by al-Qaeda' By Mark Huband, security correspondent, in London Published: October 31 2002 21:58 | Last Updated: October 31 2002 21:58
A team of foreign bombmakers trained and sent by al-Qaeda played a vital role in the blasts which killed 184 people on the Indonesian island of Bali on October 13, a detained member of the terrorist network has said. An al-Qaeda bomber known as Saad, who had trained for a suicide mission, is also said to have attended a meeting with the bombmakers and members of the Jeemah Islamiah (JI), the south- east Asian Islamist group, in southern Thailand in mid-January this year. Saad was brought to the meeting by the alleged leader of the JI, Riduan Isamuddin, also known as Hambali. According to Mohamed Mansour Jabara, a detained al-Qaeda activist now being held by the US, the plotters decided to bomb "soft" targets across south-east Asia such as nightclubs, restaurants and bars frequented by westerners. Mr Jabara, who was arrested in Oman in March, attended the meeting in Thailand. The growing evidence of a direct link between the Bali bombing and the core of al-Qaeda suggests the network's continued ability to function and the nature of its relationship with affiliated groups such as the JI. The identity of Saad has yet to be established, but he is known to have belonged to al-Qaeda, rather than JI. Following the meeting in Thailand, finance for the bombing campaign was sent from donors in Saudi Arabia, Mr Jabara has told US interrogators. According to another al-Qaeda detainee, Omar al-Faruq, JI earlier this year received $74,000 from a Saudi donor known only by what is thought to be a pseudonym, Ali Abdallah al-Emirati. According to Mr Jabara, the bombmakers who attended the meeting in Thailand were trained at the Abu Khabbab camp, al-Qaeda's main explosives and non-conventional weapons training camp in Afghanistan. It was there that video film was discovered showing al- Qaeda's chemical weapons tests on animals. Al-Qaeda's own bombers may have been used in the Bali attack because previous operations planned by JI with minimal outside help had failed. JI members are thought to have done reconnaissance before the Bali bombs were planted. The Indonesian authorities on Wednesday issued sketches of three Indonesian men who Prasetyo, a senior official of the Indonesian police, said "could be executors, or the ones who control the executors". However, in a rare public statement the director general of security of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Denis Richardson, for the first time on Thursday said that Australia, which lost 90 people in Bali, was "confident that the hand of al-Qaeda is somewhere in that atrocity". The emerging picture of a direct al-Qaeda role has raised doubts as to the value of detaining Sheikh Abu Bakr Bashir, the alleged spiritual leader of the JI now being held in Indonesia. "Arresting Bashir is useless. Al-Qaeda is still intact, and they have only detained the public figure," said Rohan Gunaratna, a regional terrorism expert. "Hambali is the one they have to go after." -- Outgoing mail is certified virus free Scanned by Norton AntiVirus <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http://archive.jab.org/ctrl@;listserv.aol.com/ <A HREF="http://archive.jab.org/ctrl@;listserv.aol.com/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
