Death of Bali bombing mastermind confirmed
Updated
Indonesian President Yudhoyono has confirmed the death of what he calls "one of Southeast Asia's top terrorists." Indonesian police say DNA tests show the dead man to be Dulmatin, one of the alleged masterminds of the 2002 Bali bombings, in which 202 people died. Dulmatin was killed along with two other militants, during a raid in Jakarta. He was reportedly a leading member of Jemaah Islamiah, the militant group with links to Al-Qaeda. Indonesia's security forces have launched a series of raids nationwide after the discovery of an alleged Islamist militant training camp in Aceh province last month.
Presenter: Sen Lam
Speakers: Rodger Baker, Director of East Asia Analysis, Stratfor Texas
- Listen:
- Windows Media
BAKER: No I'm not sure we can say it's a decisive blow yet because we're not quite sure who Dulmatin and Top have trained, but we do know that this is a major hit against this organisation and against central figures who have built and developed links not only in the region but throughout the world.
LAM: Well Dulmatin's death followed the killing of Malaysian bomb maker Noordin Top in central Java last year, is the region's fight against terrorism, even if it's not a decisive blow, is it particularly where Indonesian efforts are concerned, is the region's fight entering a new phase?
BAKER: Well I think the Indonesians have certainly stepped up their game and demonstrated a greater capability. After Top's death they managed to capture another one of the key deputy leaders of this organisation back in October of 2009 and that seems to have given them a lot of intelligence that's let them follow on through here.
LAM: And it's been noted that Dulmatin moved undetected from the southern Philippines into Aceh. Should that be of concern?
BAKER: Well there is a lot of movement between these countries and where it should be of concern is in how well countries like Indonesia and Malaysia and the Philippines coordinate their efforts. We've seen a lot of relatively free movement by ship between these areas. Militants have been able to go back and forth to take training from each other, to share weapons and to share routes for smuggling arms or smuggling individuals in. So from that sense I think it is still a concern.
LAM: Well what's your assessment of regional cooperation in security terms?
BAKER: Well we've seen more cooperation between say Indonesia and the Australians, not as much from necessarily direct cooperation with the Philippines as robust as it could be. We do think that the United States maybe interested in getting more involved, particularly as these cells are looking back again at Aceh, which sits right along the Strait of Malacca.
LAM: We've had militants even making references now to what they call the Aceh branch of al Qaeda. Is that a worrying development that Indonesian militants might be forging much stronger international links?
BAKER: Well it seems that Dulmatin was actually part of that connection and the expectation has been for a long time that at least these smaller groups have been able to restart. JI itself was a link between Al Qaeda and local militants. So there always has to be concern that these types of links continue. The question is whether it can become something large scale or whether it stays as these very small and isolated organisations that maybe able to carry out single bombings here and there, but are not fundamental threat to regimes.
LAM: And what about the southern Philippines itself? It's reported that Al Qaeda is actively recruiting there, but do you think the southern Filipinos might be more focussed on for instance issues of autonomy or possibly even separatism than joining an international militant group?
BAKER: In Mindanao certainly it seems that they're much more focussed on local issues and Al Qaeda or its international affiliates have had a tough time there. In the archipelago down in Basilan and Sulu Jolo they've had a little bit more ability to link in, and as a matter of fact the Abu Sayyaf group was original started by the Janjalani brothers who were trained in Afghanistan and trained with Al Qaeda. But they really haven't been able to strike accords across large swathes, even with the militants. And that seems to be true throughout Southeast Asia that AlQaeda as a ideology has not been able to link very well with the way Islam has developed in Southeast Asia.
