Reports out of Indonesia say that JI’s ideological leader, Abu Bakar Bashir, recently increased his rhetoric just 3 days before the bombings on two American owned Hotels in Jakarta. On June 14, Bashir, while speaking in mosque whose imam’s (priest) son had just been released from prison called for Indonesians to support attacks in Thailand.

Bashir directly called for the beheading of U.S. President Barack Obama and former U.S. President George Bush his harshest and most critical attack on the west and also called for a new Jihad versus the west in Indonesia. Just after the attacks Bashir while not claiming responsibility for the bombings sent text messages to news organizations.

[]… Radical imam Abu Bakar Bashir asserted that these bombings served as God’s warning to Indonesia for not having respected his laws. In a SMS text message that was sent to journalist, he wrote ‘those who are responsible are the infidels or apostates who are raising obstacles to Jihad in Indonesia’…. news reports []

Bashir has long been outspoken, and is viewed by many in the region as the spiritual head of the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiah. JI was founded by in part by Al Qaeda insider Hambali (currently in US custody) most members of the group that traces back to a 30′s radical group called ‘Darul Islam’, radicalized in the 80′s and 90′s the key member of JI believed to have been behind the operational attacks of last week was trained in the southern Philippines.

Noordin Mohamad Top Money man & Organizer not bomb maker
Noordin (also spelled as Noorudin) Mohamad Top, a Malaysian, trained in Mindanao’s Islamic separatist rebellion and is largely seen as the leader of a new faction fromed from Jemaah Islamiyah or JI which“At the core,” report’s say are Mindanao trained hardliners. ” Militants from the southern Philippines moving to Indonesia could breed a new generation of radicalized fringe groups”.

Increasingly JI hardliners are pulling together a new faction of JI, a “hardline group,” more linked to ‘original Darul Islam factions of Indonesia,’ the report said, “Advocates al Qaeda-style attacks against western targets.” The new group is as yet unnamed by experts.

Noordin has long ties to Mindanao, this is where Indonesian authorities say Noordin received military training and applied his training in both the Ambon conflict and in attacks in Jakarta and elsewhere.

A key element unmentioned in reports has been that Noordin is not known for building bombs but uses bomb makers. Indonesian authorities release of Abu Taout a senior bomb maker and trainor recently has is being looked at. Abu Taout is also a veteran of Mindanao’s bloody bomb attacks.

IRAQ & Al Qaeda ties
Noordin’s work with an Iraqi citizen is also a regular of intel reports from the southern hotspots of Jolo, Basilan, and central mindanao, Umar Al Farouq, in 1999. Al Farouq is believed to be one of Al Qaeda’s operatives in Southeast Asia. He is further linked to other key terror figures across the region.

Popularity: 10% [?]