Indonesia’s arrest of Jemaah Islamiah leader involved in Bali bombings exposes active recruitment to create caliphate

Para Wijayanto – known as the “crown prince of Jemaah Islamiah”, the Southeast Asian wing of al-Qaeda – was involved in a spate of bombings across Indonesia

He evaded capture for so long because he often used a burka to disguise himself, according to an expert

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Buildings and cars burn after a bomb blast in Kuta, Bali, in October 2002. Arrested Jemaah Islamiah leader Para Wijayanto was involved in those attacks and many others, according to police. Photo: AFP

Published: 10:00pm, 1 Jul 2019Updated: 11:48am, 2 Jul 2019

The Indonesian police’s arrest of the leader of Jemaah Islamiah (JI), the Southeast Asian offshoot of the international terrorism network al-Qaeda, has revealed how the group is actively recruiting members and cultivating palm oil plantations to fund its bid to establish a caliphate in the country.

Para Wijayanto, 54, who has been at large since 2003, was arrested on Saturday at a hotel in Bekasi, West Java, together with his wife and one trusted aide. On Sunday, two other JI members were arrested, according to Indonesian police.

Para, who came to be known as the “crown prince of JI”, was named the militant extremist group’s emir, or leader, in 2008, owing largely to his good organisational skills though his knowledge of Islam was limited, police said.

JI was behind all of Indonesia’s major terror attacks from 1999 to 2010, including the devastating 2002 Bali bombings which killed 202 people. At least 11 Hong Kong residents died in the blast.

Police said Para was involved in those attacks, as well as the Christmas Eve 2000 bombings across the country and the 2004 bombing of the Australian embassy in Jakarta. He is also believed to have been actively involved in terror activities in the eastern city of Poso on Sulawesi island from 2005 to 2007.