The oil- and gas-rich region of Aceh is located on the northern tip of Sumatra, Indonesia. Aceh has a population of 4.3 million and has historically been staunchly Islamic. On 1 January 2002, as part of a wide-ranging autonomy package that the Indonesian government hoped would appease separatists, Aceh was granted the right to adopt Islamic law.
Intelligence report: Bin Laden sought Indonesian base
Counterterrorism experts say he also checked out Yemen
http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/southeast/07/09/indo.binladen
From Maria Ressa
CNN Correspondent
MANILA, Philippines (CNN) --Intelligence officials tell CNN that Osama bin Laden wanted to move the base of operations for his al Qaeda terrorist network from Afghanistan to Southeast Asia in 2000.
The plan, according to these officials' intelligence report, was to move the base to Aceh in Indonesia, where members of the Free Aceh movement (or GAM) were working with al Qaeda.
Aceh is a remote Muslim province in which rebels have fought for a separate Islamic state for decades. Bin Laden's No. 2, Egyptian Ayman Al-Zawahiri visited Aceh with al Qaeda's former military chief, Mohammed Atef, in June 2000.
"Both of them were impressed by the lack of security, the support and extent of Muslim population," reads the intelligence report made available to CNN. "This visit was part of a wider strategy of shifting the base of Osama bin Laden's terrorist operations from the subcontinent to Southeast Asia."
What's most interesting about this element of Aceh's make-up and past is not about damage to an Islamic area. I think this logic is sick.
HOWEVER: I have trouble imagining how the Islamists can interpret this attack as anything else but a punishment from God for their activities. Especially when you consider that it occured on Christmas (not necessarily Jesus's true birthday -- but a day when many Christians were praying for protection and 'love' for their enemies). And then you add the Bam attack at the same time a year ago. If I were an Islamist or an Al-Qaida terrorist, these events would present a significant challenge to my world-view. You think about the major areas of anti-American and terrorist activity in the Islamic world:
Afghanistan: Government Toppled
Indonesia: Massive Earthquake
Iran: Massive Earthquake
Iraq: Government Toppled
Pakistan: Aggressive Pursuit of Terrorists
On top of this, I think that this event blocks most short-term sympathy/support that Al-Qaida would gain from a massive attack in the US. At least for the meantime, I think the world is tired of death.