Noordin Top Killed?
By Kenneth Conboy
The local Indonesian media is now reporting that top Jemaah Islamiyah fugitive Noordin Top was likely among the four persons killed in a police raid in Solo, Central Java. One of the four apparently detonated a suicide vest earlier this morning, leaving police to find a headless torso. This corpse is thought to belong to Top, who reportedly wore such a vest on all occasions.
The other three fatalities are thought to be Urwah (said to be a field coordinator during the 17 July hotel bombings in Jakarta), Adib Susilo (who had rented the house where the raid took place), and one of Top's closest colleagues, Maruto. Adib's pregnant wife was said to have been seriously injured.
Given that Top has been incorrectly reported dead on several previous occasions, the police have refused to issue any comments about the casualties until DNA results come back in about four days.