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Laskar Jihad, violent Indonesian Muslim group, has disbanded
Jakarta, Oct 15: Laskar Jihad, Indonesia`s most violent Muslim extremist group which is blamed for the slaughter of thousands of Christians in a sectarian conflict in the Maluku islands, has disbanded, the group`s legal adviser said today.
Jakarta, Oct 15: Laskar Jihad, Indonesia's most violent Muslim extremist group which is blamed for the slaughter of thousands of Christians in a sectarian conflict in the Maluku islands, has disbanded, the group's legal adviser said today.
The claim, which could not immediately be confirmed, appeared to be the first sign that Indonesia was getting serious about cracking down on Muslim extremism in the wake of Saturday's bombing of a nightclub in Bali which killed nearly 200 people. Efforts to contact Jafar Umar Thalib, the group's leader in Ambon, the capital of Maluku province about 2,600 kms east of Jakarta, were unsuccessful.
Achmad Michdan, the group's legal adviser, told the Associated Press in Jakarta that the move was not connected to Saturday's bombing.
``It has nothing to do with the bombs. There was no pressure on US from military,'' he said.
``It is an internal matter. The clerics in Indonesia and in the Middle East have disagreed with Jafar Umar Thalib's teachings and have asked him to disband the group,'' Michdan said without elaborating. Thalib is currently on trial for inciting violence in maluku. Michdan said he would attend a court session in Jakarta on Thursday.
Police in Ambon confirmed that about 500 members of the paramilitary group boarded a ship for Indonesia's main island Java today, after driving through Ambon in a huge convoy. They were accompanied by about 200 members of their families.
``They left on their own initiative. The government did not interfere,'' said Maluku police chief, Brig. Gen. Sunarko Danu Ardianto. Bureau Report
The claim, which could not immediately be confirmed, appeared to be the first sign that Indonesia was getting serious about cracking down on Muslim extremism in the wake of Saturday's bombing of a nightclub in Bali which killed nearly 200 people. Efforts to contact Jafar Umar Thalib, the group's leader in Ambon, the capital of Maluku province about 2,600 kms east of Jakarta, were unsuccessful.
Achmad Michdan, the group's legal adviser, told the Associated Press in Jakarta that the move was not connected to Saturday's bombing.
``It has nothing to do with the bombs. There was no pressure on US from military,'' he said.
``It is an internal matter. The clerics in Indonesia and in the Middle East have disagreed with Jafar Umar Thalib's teachings and have asked him to disband the group,'' Michdan said without elaborating. Thalib is currently on trial for inciting violence in maluku. Michdan said he would attend a court session in Jakarta on Thursday.
Police in Ambon confirmed that about 500 members of the paramilitary group boarded a ship for Indonesia's main island Java today, after driving through Ambon in a huge convoy. They were accompanied by about 200 members of their families.
``They left on their own initiative. The government did not interfere,'' said Maluku police chief, Brig. Gen. Sunarko Danu Ardianto. Bureau Report