New Details Emerge about Arrests in Indonesia

By Kenneth Conboy

Earlier today (15 June) the Indonesian police held a press conference during which they revealed more information about eight recently-captured terrorist suspects. The emerging details, if true, are full of surprises. First, Abu Dujana, who was captured on 9 June in Banyumas, Central Java, now states that he was Jemaah Islamiyah's military commander. Previously, it had been believed that he was the group's emir, or overall leader.

Second, an unknown figure named Zarkasih, who was captured on 9 June in Jogjakarta, claims he was JI's de facto emir since about 2004. Until today, virtually nothing was known about Zarkasih. He is thought to have come from Kudus, Central Java, and trained in Pakistan during the anti-Soviet jihad in 1987. More recently, he spent time as a paramilitary training camp in the southern Philippines, then in the troubled Indonesian province of Central Sulawesi. At no time prior to today was his name ever linked to the JI's upper echelon, much less emir. By his own admission, he was selected for the job because so many of his colleagues had been captured.

All of which raises questions. If an unknown like Zarkasih became JI's default emir, it speaks volumes about the level of attrition within JI's ranks.

Moreover, in today's police briefing there was no mention of senior JI member Zulkarnaen. For years, Zulkarnaen has been described as the senior military chieftain within that organization--a position that Abu Dujana now claims he held. While Zulkarnaen's exact role in JI might now be a question mark, he remains one of the country's top fugitives.

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