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Cleric charged with bomb plots in Indonesia, Singapore
Jakarta, Apr 14: Prosecutors today accused Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir of plotting terror bombings in Indonesia and Singapore as part of a campaign to topple the Indonesian government and set up an Islamic state.
Jakarta, Apr 14: Prosecutors today accused Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir of plotting terror bombings in Indonesia and Singapore as part of a campaign to topple the Indonesian government and set up an Islamic state.
An indictment filed in court describes the Muslim cleric as "emir" or leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) regional terror network which is blamed for a series of bombings or attempted bombings in the region.
Bashir is formally charged with treason, which is punishable with a 20-year jail term, and three immigration offences. He is accused of conspiring to commit treason with Abdullah Sungkar, Hambali, Zulkarnaen, Imam Samudra and Mukhlas.
Hambali, as the suspected former operations chief of JI, is Asia's most wanted man. Samudra and Mukhlas are awaiting trial for the Bali bombings last October, which killed 202 people. The 25-page charge sheet does not accuse Bashir, 64, of direct involvement in the Bali bombings. But it says he gave his blessing to the Christmas Eve bombings of churches and priests in 2000, which killed 19 people in Indonesia.
“Bashir also approved the planning to bomb American interests in Singapore known as Programme C," it says.
Singapore foiled that bombing plot with the arrest of a large number of JI suspects.
The charges, along with thousands of pages of evidence, were handed over in preparation for a trial. A court official said it could take part in Jakarta "within weeks”. "The defendant is the leader and organiser of treason with the intention of topple the government and fulfilling his intention of setting up the Islamic state of Indonesia," the charge reads.
Bureau Report
Bashir is formally charged with treason, which is punishable with a 20-year jail term, and three immigration offences. He is accused of conspiring to commit treason with Abdullah Sungkar, Hambali, Zulkarnaen, Imam Samudra and Mukhlas.
Hambali, as the suspected former operations chief of JI, is Asia's most wanted man. Samudra and Mukhlas are awaiting trial for the Bali bombings last October, which killed 202 people. The 25-page charge sheet does not accuse Bashir, 64, of direct involvement in the Bali bombings. But it says he gave his blessing to the Christmas Eve bombings of churches and priests in 2000, which killed 19 people in Indonesia.
“Bashir also approved the planning to bomb American interests in Singapore known as Programme C," it says.
Singapore foiled that bombing plot with the arrest of a large number of JI suspects.
The charges, along with thousands of pages of evidence, were handed over in preparation for a trial. A court official said it could take part in Jakarta "within weeks”. "The defendant is the leader and organiser of treason with the intention of topple the government and fulfilling his intention of setting up the Islamic state of Indonesia," the charge reads.
Bureau Report