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| Southeast Asia |
| Indonesian womans terror ties |
| 2010-04-08 |
| [Straits Times] AN INDONESIAN woman accused of harbouring one of South-east Asia's most wanted terrorist suspects before he was killed in a shootout with police wanted to die a martyr rather than turn her guest over to authorities, prosecutors told a Jakarta court Wednesday. The trial of 21-year-old Putri Munawaroh, who was arrested after September's gunbattle at a house in Central Java, is focusing on her ties to alleged militant mastermind Noordin Top, who was killed in the police raid along with three other suspected terrorists, including Munawaroh's husband. Noordin, a Malaysian who eluded capture for more than seven years, was said to be an Al-Qaeda-funded bomb maker wanted in connection with five major bombings in Indonesia since 2002, including a blast in Bali that year that left more than 200 dead. He was also accused of ties to twin suicide attacks last July at the Ritz-Carlton and J.W. Marriott hotels in Jakarta that killed seven and wounded 50. Those strikes ended a four-year lull in terrorist attacks in the world's most populous Muslim-majority country. Prosecutors say Munawaroh sheltered Noordin at the house from July until the September raid. Munawaroh, who was wounded in the shootout, was pregnant at the time of her arrest and later gave birth to a son, who lives with her in prison. If convicted of harboring terrorists and concealing information about terrorist activities, Munawaroh faces up to 20 years in prison. She is the fifth alleged conspirator to go on trial since February over the hotel bombings. All the trials are ongoing. |
| Posted by:Fred |