Indonesia Update
By Kenneth Conboy
The Indonesian police announced a new twist in the ongoing investigation into the Bali II knapsack bombings that took place last October. (On 1 October 2005, three Indonesian suicide bombers set off knapsacks at three restaurants on the island resort of Bali.) Early on, it was assumed that Jemaah Islamiyah fugitives Noordin Top and Azhari Husein had been the masterminds behind these attacks, and in fact this proved to be the case.
Last week, however, it was learned that jailed JI militant Imam Samudra, who is on death row for the October 2002 Bali bombings, had also been involved in planning the October 2005 strike. Apparently, as-yet unidentified persons had smuggled a laptop into Samudra's Bali jail cell, enabling him to make internet contact with JI members on the outside, including some apparently involved in the Bali II planning.
The extent of Samudra's internet connections are still being investigated, but it is believed that he participated in an Indonesian-language chatroom, and also had contact with an Indonesian militant website called anshor.net. Exactly what assistance or guidance he provided for the Bali II bombers is not yet known.
Also unknown is how he was able to obtain a laptop. Indonesian prisons are notorious for the types of goods and services that can be smuggled inside; even by these standards, however, it is shocking that such a high-profile terrorist could gain access to a computer connected to the internet.
Cynics might point out that this story comes at an opportune time for the government. Samudra was supposed to be executed in August, though a recent appeal had delayed his visit to a firing squad. Now that he is being investigated for the smuggled laptop, the date can be pushed back even farther. The government is loathe to execute Samudra and two other Bali bombers because they fear political blowback from Islamic conservatives.
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