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our explosion-free years have distracted most eyes from the protracted threat of terrorism, with new terrorist cells evolving from the network of notorious master bomber and recruiter Noordin M. Top, who remains at large.

While the nation has been occupied by the euphoria of a crisis-free economy and the general election, these cells have been building up logistics and recruiting new suicide bombers for fresh attacks.

During last Friday's deadly twin bombings of the luxurious US chains, the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta, most of the police's anti-terror surveillance unit, Satgas Anti-Terror and the counterterrorism special forces, Detachment 88, were flocking to Yogyakarta and Central Java to chase a cell believed to have had direct contact with Noordin.

However, a separate cell was slipping through their fingers, unleash ing carnage in the capital.

"Noordin's operations are cyclical. After launching an attack, a cell is dissolved into smaller units after the death of their suicide bombers or the arrest of their members," said Ansyaad Mbai, the head of anti-terrorism desk at the office of the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs.

"From these smaller units, they start from scratch again by recruiting new people, indoctrinating them and then finding the best target and time to launch a terrorist attack."

None of the cells are believed to have mutual contact other than with Noordin.

Ansyaad said that formerly jailed terrorists, now totalling more than 100, may have contributed to the formation of new terrorist cells.

While no systematic and sustainable measures are available for rehabilitating and re-educating released terrorists, or for keeping track of them, most of the released terrorists are believed to have returned to Noordin's networks.

"The police are limited in their capacity to conduct strict surveillance of the activities of former criminals," said Ansyaad.

"These terrorists were sent to jail for crimes based on a very radical ideology and no one can guarantee that they have been de-radicalized. This is a matter of ideology and no one can ensure that."

As of 2007, there were 408 terrorists and 41 percent of them had undergone rehabilitation or re-education programs, according to the August 2008 doctorate thesis of Sr. Comr. Benny Jozua Mamoto, a senior terrorist investigator.

Sources from the police said former police chief Gen. (ret) Sutanto had warned President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono about the problem of released terrorists as the police lacked the capability, infrastructure and funding to track their activities once they were out of jail.

Sutanto also proposed that the President involve other agencies to help monitor and rehabilitate the terrorists in order to ensure they would no longer be lured to repeat their crimes, however, his proposal was in vain.

Sidney Jones, a terrorism expert from the International Crisis Group, is not convinced over major involvement of formerly jailed terrorists in new cells, saying there were few indications of them being involved in terrorism again as they may have been under constant surveillance.

She said profiles of people recruited to become terrorists were varied and were not motivated by financial or psychological reasons.

"If we look at the five men who were chosen to become "martyrs" in the second Bali bombing, we know the answer was not poverty or desperation, nor was it necessarily affiliated with JI (Al-Jama'ah Al-Islamiyah terrorist network)."

"In fact, most of the suicide bombers so far haven't been from JI," she said, adding they had come from West Java, Sumatra and Sulawesi, and had different socioeconomic backgrounds.

Noordin is believed by experts to be leading a breakaway group of JI whose members now mostly prefer nonviolent approaches to making Indonesia an Islamic state.

Jones said the terrorist networks had taken time to train new people and raise funds for their operations over the past four years.

"After the second Bali bombing in October 2005, Noordin lost Azahari, one of his most trusted associates. It may have taken him time to replace his core team and raise funds," she said.

She said Noordin's network had always operated in a cell structure, in which one cell could not know about the activities of other cells.

Nasir Abas, a former JI member, said in his book Deciphering Jamaah Islamiyah that members, in most cases, had no idea they were involved in terrorist activities.

"People were recruited with invitations to help fight for the Muslim cause without being informed about the intended means."

In the book, Nasir described recruitment being made through Koranic studying activities, where participants were eventually indoctrinated and made to feel guilty if they failed to obey their leaders.

"When JI was under the spotlight for being responsible for the Bali bombings, many members stop joining the group's religious activities.

"Not even all members of JI were aware of the bombing plans. Most of them would have disagreed with such an action that would claim the lives of innocent people," wrote Nasir.