Thread by @saikirankannan

#Indonesia’s elite counterterrorism squad has arrested a convicted militant and suspected leader of an #AlQaeda-linked group that has been blamed for a string of past bombings in the country.

Abu Rusdan was seized late Friday in Bekasi near the capital of #Jakarta, along with three other suspected members of Jemaah Islamiyah.

He is currently known to be active among the unlawful Jemaah Islamiyah network’s leadership.

Indonesian authorities consider Rusdan to be a key figure in the Jemaah Islamiyah, which the U.S. has designated a terrorist group.

The shadowy Southeast Asian network is widely blamed for attacks in the #Philippines and #Indonesia — including the 2002 bombings in the Indonesian resort island of #Bali that killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists.

Born in Central Java, Rusdan, 61, was sentenced to jail in 2003 for sheltering Ali Ghufron, a militant who was later convicted and executed for carrying out the Bali bombings.

After his release from prison in 2006, Rusdan traveled Indonesia giving speeches and fiery sermons that received tens of thousands of views on YouTube.

#Indonesia

In one recorded sermon, he praised as the “land of jihad” Afghanistan — the country where he had previously trained with other militant groups.

A spokesman for Indonesia’s National Intelligence Agency, Wawan Hari Purwanto, said in a video statement early this month that following the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan, officials have stepped up their efforts at early detection and prevention...

“particularly toward terrorist groups that have links to the #Taliban’s ideology and networks.”

#Indonesia

ktar.com/story/4680241/…