Bali bombing suspects from Indonesia, Malaysia to go on trial in Guantanamo Bay
- Indonesian Riduan Isamuddin or Encep Nurjaman, better known by his nom de guerre Hambali, has been held at Guantanamo Bay since 2006
- His arraignment, alongside Malaysians Mohammed Nazir bin Lep and Mohammed Farik bin Amin, is merely the first step in what could be a long legal journey
Indonesian Encep Nurjaman, also known as Riduan Isamuddin and better known by his nom de guerre Hambali, and Malaysians Mohammed Nazir bin Lep, 45, and Mohammed Farik bin Amin, 46, were to be arraigned on Monday before a military commission on charges that include murder, conspiracy and terrorism.
It is merely the first step in what could be a long legal journey for a case that involves evidence tainted by CIA torture, the same issue that is largely responsible for causing other war crimes cases to languish for years at Guantanamo.
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They are accused of carrying out the bombings of tourist nightclubs in Bali on October 12, 2002 that killed 202 people – including 11 Hong Kong residents – and the August 5, 2003 attack on the JW Marriott hotel in Jakarta that left 12 dead and scores more injured.
Nazir and Farik were said to be top Hambali aides in Jemaah Islamiah, the southeast Asian branch of al-Qaeda, and were trained by the militant Islamist terror group, according to Guantanamo case documents.
Nazir and Farik face nine charges, while Hambali faces eight, in relation to their alleged roles in the terror attacks, a charge sheet by the commission stated.
All three were charged with conspiracy, attempted murder, murder, intentionally causing serious bodily injury, terrorism, destruction of property, and attacking civilians.
The decision to charge them was made by a Pentagon legal official at the end of the Trump administration, complicating efforts to close the detention centre, said Brian Bouffard, a lawyer for Nazir.
That made it more difficult for the new administration to add any to the list of those who could potentially be transferred out of Guantanamo or even sent home. “It will even be harder after an arraignment,” Bouffard said.
Whether the arraignment would actually take place was not certain. Lawyers have sought to put the case on hold for a number of reasons, including what they have said is insufficient access to interpreters and other resources to mount a defence. The accused were still expected to show up for the hearing.
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Farik’s lawyer, Christine Funk, predicted a lengthy period of defence investigation that will require extensive travel, once the pandemic is over, to interview witnesses and look for evidence. Still, she said, her client is “anxious and eager to litigate this case and go home”.
Hambali, sometimes known in the media as the “Osama bin Laden of Southeast Asia”, remains an inspiring figure for regional extremists, according to observers.
Reporting by The Star Online, Associated Press
