Thursday, July 29, 2010

Slain terror suspect had plan to attack Singapore

Slain terror suspect had plan to attack Singapore
AP Wednesday, July 28, 2010

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JAKARTA, Indonesia – A slain Indonesian terrorism suspect and associates planned to attack Singapore and a map with one of the city-state's subway stations marked in red was found on his body after he was shot dead, police said Wednesday.

Ahmad Maulana's plot came to light during the interrogation of Abdullah Sunata, Indonesia's most-wanted terror suspect arrested last month in Central Java, said Col. Peter Golose of Indonesia's counterterrorism unit.

Golose did not identify a specific target, but said a map of Singapore with a major subway station marked with a red circle and arrow was discovered in a backpack on Maulana's body.

Maulana, who is said to have received training in the southern Philippines, was fatally shot during a police raid in the capital Jakarta in May. He was accused of involvement in a jihadist training camp in Indonesia's Aceh province.

"Maulana has associates in Malaysia and also in Singapore," Golose told reporters on the sidelines of a two-day de-radicalization workshop attended by officials and non-governmental organizations from Singapore and Saudi Arabia. "We are investigating what they have planned ... because Maulana's network still exists."

Maulana's associates are affiliated with the Southeast Asian terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah, Golose said.

Indonesia has battled Islamist militants with links to Jemaah Islamiyah since 2002, when extremists bombed a nightclub district on Bali island, killing 202 people, mostly foreign tourists.

Authorities previously said Sunata's new network, uncovered in February, had plans to launch a Mumbai-style terrorist assault and kill President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and other high-profile targets during August Independence Day celebrations.