Indonesia want access to jailed terror suspect

The Associated Press ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 11/21/2008 6:49 PM  |  National

Indonesia will seek access to an alleged Southeast Asian terror chief after the United States closes its prison at Guantanamo Bay, the Foreign Ministry said Friday.

Hambali, also known as Riduan Isamuddin, has been accused of heading the al-Qaida-linked Jemaah Islamiyah militant group blamed for a string of bombings in the world's most populous Muslim nation, including a 2002 attack on the resort island of Bali that killed 202 people.

He allegedly also had ties to two of the hijackers in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the U.S., but has denied any role in terrorist activities.

Indonesia has asked many times to meet Hambali since his U.S.-led arrest in 2003, saying he has valuable information about Jemaah Islamiyah, but the answer was always no, said Teuku Faizasyah, a Foreign Ministry spokesman.

"What we want now is consular access," he said, commending U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's pledge to shut the U.S. detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a move that will result in some detainees being released and others being charged in U.S. courts. "We hope with the incoming administration, we'll get it."

Washington said earlier it wanted to try Hambali, but has not charged him with any crime.

It argued that granting the Indonesians access could hamper the U.S. investigation into his activities, which reportedly included a plan to recruit new pilots for another wave of suicide hijackings in the United States.




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