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Second airport worker is linked to al-Qaeda

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Australian immigrant allegedly raised funds for extremists

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An Indonesian immigrant who allegedly raised funds for an extremist Islamic group with suspected links to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiah (JI) worked as a shuttle bus driver at Sydney airport, it was claimed yesterday.

The Australian newspaper reported that Dance Darmince, also known as Mohammad Darimi, was a key figure in Laskar Jihad, an extremist Islamic group blamed for fomenting violence against Christians in the Maluku islands in eastern Indonesia.

Laskar Jihad, which wants to see Indonesia ruled by a strict Islamic regime, is held responsible for the death of thousands of Christians in Ambon, the capital of the Malukus, and is now thought to be active in the restive Indonesian province of West Papua.

Mr Darmince reportedly worked as a driver at Sydney airport from 1999 until last November, when he quit his job and returned to Indonesia.

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He is an Australian citizen and had lived in Sydney for about 20 years.

It was the second time in three days that a former airport worker was linked to Islamic extremism. On Monday, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation alleged in a documentary that Lebanon-born Bilal Khazal, who worked as a baggage handler, was believed by the CIA to be Osama bin Laden's representative in Australia.

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