Bashir's warning to Australians [Abu Sayef threatens war w/ Australia]

The Melbourne Age ^ | 13/12/02 | Stephen Gibbs, Matthew Moore

[1bigdictator]

Bashir's warning to Australians December 13 2002 By Stephen Gibbs, Matthew Moore Jakarta

The man who Western governments say is the spiritual leader of the terrorist group accused of masterminding the Bali bombing says Australia will be "destroyed instantly" if it launches a pre-emptive strike against terrorist targets in other countries.

Abu Bakar Bashir, the cleric accused of heading recently banned South-East Asian group Jemaah Islamiah, said Australians would be dragged into a war with Muslims if they went along with the "crazy idea" of a pre-emptive strike floated recently by Prime Minister John Howard.

"So, if John Howard's stance is followed by the people of Australia you must know that there will be war in the world and, God willing, Australia will be destroyed instantly due to the crazy idea of its Prime Minister.

"Australian people, God willing, have no problem with Islam," but their leaders, such as Mr Howard, "do influence their people a lot to make enemies of Islam.

"The incumbent Prime Minister is the ally of George Bush, the worst and most evil president in the world. John Howard is his ally."

Bashir, who heads a militant Islamic boarding school in Central Java where thousands of young men have studied, said suicide bombings were a "noble thing" when used in defence of Islam.

"Martyrs' bombs are a noble thing, a jihad of high value if you are forced to do it.

"For instance, in Palestine there is no other way to defend yourself and defend Islam. All Ulamas (Muslim leaders) agree with martyrs' bombs because we are forced to do it. There's no other way to defend ourselves and to defend Islam.

"Like my Muslim brothers in Palestine facing Israel, they are forced to do such a thing because of the unequal weapons.

"Israel gets weapons supplied by Allah's enemy, the American Government, while the Palestinians do not have weapons that are capable of fighting back so there's no other way but the martyr-bombers' way."

Bashir made his comments in answer to a series of questions prepared by The Age. The questions were put to him and recorded by one of his confidants in Jakarta's police hospital on Wednesday where he is being held for questioning about a series of church bombings on Christmas Eve 2000.

In contrast with his comments in an interview with The Age just after the Bali bombing, Bashir expressed some sympathy for the bomb victims who he said appeared to be "only ordinary tourists" and not involved in attacking Islam.

But he said Muslims had no choice but to defend themselves from attacks by the US and its allies, including Australia.

"We are obliged to defend ourselves and attack people who attack Islam. In Islam there is no word for hands up, there is no word for surrender; there are only two things, win or die.

"If infidels do want to attack Islam, fight Islam, so we are instructed to fight them."

He denied knowing Imam Samudra or any others arrested for the Bali bombings who he claimed were incapable of organising such an attack.

He repeated his belief that the US and Israel were behind the bombing but again offered no evidence to support this.

Bashir continued to deny his involvement in JI, or even that it existed, claiming it as an American invention to prove Muslims were terrorists.

He admitted to making "several trips" to Australia, but not the 11 the Australian Government says he has made. He remembered visiting four cities - Sydney Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane - but could not remember where he stayed.

"I visited Australia because of a Koran-reading invitation by the Muslim community there . . . I stayed in their houses, kept moving and forget who those people are because it is a one-week visit."

He said he had no network in Australia and that "all the trips" had been paid for by the Australians who had invited him.

Bashir, who was arrested under anti-terrorism legislation passed in the weeks after the Bali bombing, said he would still like to visit Australia again but not if the situation was unsafe, as it was now.

[1bigdictator]

I don't care who tries to flame me or call me a bigot or racist... but if any of those Muslim monkey faced terrorists attacks our ally we should flatten Indonesia... Period.

[steveegg]

Methinks the venerable Aardvarks of the RAAF are going to go to town and do some gold-melting. Remember, the Japanese circa WWII knew better than to <expletive deleted> with the Aussies. Of course, that was before they banned all the guns.

[BureaucratusMaximus]

Bashir's warning to Australians December 13 2002 By Stephen Gibbs, Matthew Moore Jakarta

Wow! Now thats breaking news if I ever seen it! LOL.

[pgyanke]

"In Islam there is no word for hands up, there is no word for surrender; there are only two things, win or die."

---

There you have it... win or die. There is no compromise... no peaceful coexistance. From their own mouths...

[1bigdictator]

I posted December 13 on the date but the server wouldn't accept it... no accounting for time zones I guess.

[concerned about politics]

The man who Western governments say is the spiritual leader of the terrorist group accused of masterminding the Bali bombing says Australia will be "destroyed instantly" if it launches a pre-emptive strike against terrorist targets in other countries.

If it doesn't launch pre-emptive strikes against terrorist targets, it will be "destroyed instantly."
Gee. Let me think. Decisions, decisions.
I'd go for destroying them fist. It seems more logical to me. (Camel humpers are not deep thinkers. They just have a kill fetish)

[pgyanke]

""So, if John Howard's stance is followed by the people of Australia you must know that there will be war in the world and, God willing, Australia will be destroyed instantly due to the crazy idea of its Prime Minister."

---

Australia would be destroyed INSTANTLY. Sure sounds like a WMD threat to me. For all of you Demonrat lurkers: THAT's why we don't want terrorists having these weapons. Their motivations are victory or death and they will do whatever it takes to achieve victory.

The West takes great pains to find peaceful solutions and even rebuilds our enemies after their defeat. Are you sure you peaceniks are supporting the right side?

[johniegrad]

"For instance, in Palestine there is no other way to defend yourself and defend Islam. All Ulamas (Muslim leaders) agree with martyrs' bombs because we are forced to do it. There's no other way to defend ourselves and to defend Islam.

This quote is a clear indication that he believes that he speaks for all of Islam. He is not referring to fundamentalism, Wahabbis, Sunni, Shiites. He is referring to all of Islam.

These types of statements need to be actively reported on in the media and correctly attributed as being representative of the views of all Muslims. If he does not represent all of Islam and is lying about it, then moderates and mainstream members of that religion need to come forward and speak forcefully against it. If they do not and he truly represents the entire Muslim world with this drivel, then they need to face the ugly consequences.

[cake_crumb]

Destroyed "instantly"?

Abu Bakar Bashir, you are going to die horribly, bud...and so are your co-psycho terrorists.

[pgyanke]

"If he does not represent all of Islam and is lying about it, then moderates and mainstream members of that religion need to come forward and speak forcefully against it."

---

They are too busy worrying about Trent Lott offending someone to speak out against mayhem and genocide.

[steveegg]

Nothing like the International Date Line and Summer Time (Australia's version of Daylight Savings) screwing up a perfectly good joke; it is already the 13th in Australia.

[livius]

I doubt that they have the capability to obliterate Australia or anything more than the people they come directly in contact with (that is, victims of homicide bombers, snipers, etc.). What al Qaeda has found, however, is that their announcements get magnified through the press and they think this makes them seem a lot more powerful than they are. They are picturing us trembling as we read this, although I doubt that many are.

I'm sure that if they had had the capacity to "obliterate" anything, they'd have done it long before now. But this doesn't mean that there won't be more Bali-style terrorist attacks, unfortunately, possibly even on Australian soil.

[steveegg]

It's safe to say that he represents most of Islam.

[BureaucratusMaximus]

Was aware of that...was just a feeble attempt at humor.

[marshmallow]

"Australian people, God willing, have no problem with Islam," but their leaders, such as Mr Howard, "do influence their people a lot to make enemies of Islam.

Correction, son of a dog. Australian people had no problem with Islam until *you* guys made it a problem. Once you started indiscriminately tossing around bombs and killing people at random, they, like the rest of us, started to have a very definite problem with your peaceful religion.

You got our attention pronto, my friend. Furthermore, the bloodthirsty "God" whom you claim to worship holds no fear for us. We worship the true God and his son, Jesus Christ.

If you don't want special ops men singing in your front porch, put away the bombs and bullets, renounce random violence and things will be just dandy.

[pgyanke]

"In contrast with his comments in an interview with The Age just after the Bali bombing, Bashir expressed some sympathy for the bomb victims who he said appeared to be "only ordinary tourists" and not involved in attacking Islam.

But he said Muslims had no choice but to defend themselves from attacks by the US and its allies, including Australia."

---

In the news today: Muslim cleric promises retaliation if America and its allies retaliate for the violence visited upon them by Muslims. He was quoted as saying, "It will be the mother of all battles. While they attack us with their tanks and precision-guided weapons, we will mercilessly send young Smepdi and his fellow pre-schoolers into video arcades swarming with teenagers." Asked how that would win the war for him, he could only reply, "what can I say, we like killing and the military targets are too tough."

Cowards.

[Man of the Right]

If I get the idiot's argument it's: don't resist us exterminating you, or we'll exterminate you.

[smpc]

Bashir threatening war with Australia?Big words for a guy who makes Monty Burns look buff.