Bin Laden's 'invitation' to Bashir

The Sunday Times ^ | Februari 02 2004 | Sian Powell

[knighthawk]

JUST before his September 11 attacks on the US, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden sent a friendly invitation to the now imprisoned Indonesian cleric Abu Bakar Bashir.

"Greetings from Osama bin Laden," the extremist leader said in the invitation, apparently forwarded to Indonesia via Jemaah Islamiah ringleader Hambali.

Known as al-Qaeda's linkman in Asia, Hambali was then in Afghanistan for unclear reasons. He passed the verbal message on to Mohammad Rais - a detained Jemaah Islamiah operative who was then heading to Indonesia.

"Osama bin Laden invites Ustad Abu Bakar Bashir to come to Afghanistan if the conditions for Ustad Abu Bakar Bashir have been made impossible in Indonesia," the invitation read.

As the man behind the September 11 atrocities, bin Laden may have realised extremist Muslims were about to become the pinpoint focus of police and intelligence officials around the world.

The revelations were made in the indictment of Rais, whose trial in connection with the bombing of Jakarta's Marriott hotel began last week. It claims the invitation was a matter of extreme importance.

Rais arrived in Indonesia on September 12, 2001, after two years in Afghanistan. Within a couple of days he had delivered the invitation to Bashir, the cleric dubbed the spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiah.

From his Jakarta prison cell, Bashir yesterday flatly denied ever receiving an invitation from bin Laden. Rais had been educated at Bashir's notorious Pondok Ngruki school in Solo, alma mater of many convicted JI operatives, but Bashir said he had never met him. "I have only heard of Mohammad Rais from the newspapers," he said.

Bashir has already been cleared of the treason charges for which he was convicted last September, and is now imprisoned on a conviction for document falsification, which he has also appealed against.

Terrorism expert Sidney Jones, director of the International Crisis Group's Jakarta office, said bin Laden's invitation was the first real evidence that Bashir was well known to the al-Qaeda leader.

"There have been hints but this is the first courtroom evidence I've seen," Dr Jones said. "It's very revealing that he chose to direct a message to Abu Bakar Bashir."

The invitation also indicated that Rais, despite his relative youth, was an important JI operative. "This guy is seriously dangerous. He was running the Afghanistan office at the same time Gun-Gun (Hambali's younger brother, now detained in Jakarta) was running the Pakistan office," Dr Jones said.

According to Indonesian prosecutors, Rais was a protege of Hambali's. Rais, now a fresh-faced 28-year-old, was sent by Hambali to Pakistan and Afghanistan in 1999 to learn the ways of jihad, and returned to Indonesia bearing bin Laden's invitation.

Rais has rolled over, providing Indonesian police with comprehensive information about his crimes. It is likely his trial, which recommences tomorrow, will produce some startling new information about Jemaah Islamiah and al-Qaeda.

Rais introduced his schoolmate, Marriott Hotel suicide bomber Asmar Latin Sani, to two Jemaah Islamiah ringleaders. These two, Azahari bin Husin and Noordin Mohammad Top, are both still on the run.

"The accused invited Asmar Latin Sani to do jihad appropriate to the teachings which he understood, that is martyr himself such as the jihad which is done by Palestinians," the indictment says. "And because the accused saw that Asmar Latin Sani had the high enthusiasm and respect to do jihad and had the desire to have a holy death, he introduced him to Noordin Mohammad Top and Dr Azahari."

On his arrival in court last Monday, Rais, indicted for helping to plan the lethal attack, was cheered lustily.

"Allahu Akbar," shouted his supporters. "God is great."

[knighthawk]

Ping

[angkor]

Rais, whose trial in connection with the bombing of Jakarta's Marriott hotel began last week ... was cheered lustily..."Allahu Akbar," shouted his supporters.

These "supporters" are braindead savages. Even Rais himself has apologized for his actions.

13 of the 14 killed - and about 140 of the 152 injured - were Indonesian Muslims. The resulting negative impact on hotel occupancies has put many other Indonesian Muslims out of work.

[reformedliberal]

I haven't seen any reports on the state of outsourced manufacturing in Indonesia by US firms. Do you know anything about this?

Locally, a doll making company, owned by 1-800-FLOWERS.com, has used Indonesian factories for years, but only for items not profitable here, like doll clothes. This year, 15 doll makers were let go and told the work would now be done in Indonesia. I know the manager had spent a lot of time there in the past few years teaching Indonesians to make the product.

This particular enterprise almost went to Virginia several years ago, but was kept in rural Wisconsin because the wages are lower here.

[angkor]

state of outsourced manufacturing in Indonesia by US firms. Do you know anything about this?

No, but Indonesia's trade with the U.S. is not insignificant.

For example, take a look at the Pier One chain, I think their entire inventory is from Indonesia. And Scan sells some very nice Indonesian furniture as well. Both are price-competitive with American household stuff from North Carolina, so it's not as if they're undercutting American manufacturers.

OTOH, I do know that software outsourcing to Indo is exactly zilch. None of that going on.

[angkor]

I forgot to mention: Intel, Dell, and other tech companies have been outsourcing to Malaysia for years. But not to Indo.