Anti-terror police arrested a suspected Islamic militant and seized explosives from his home in central Indonesia on Monday, a top security official said. The capture of Ahmad Khoirul Uman — accused of having ties to the al-Qaeda-linked regional terror network, Jemaah Islamiyah — brought the number of terror suspects detained on Java island in the last week to eight.Several of those arrested are suspected of having played a role in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people. Others have been linked to the 2004 Australian Embassy bombing in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, that left 10 dead. Lt. Col. Hari Dahana, police chief in Indonesia's second largest city, Surabaya, said one of the men detained last week tipped authorities off to the whereabouts of 24-year-old Uman. "Police confiscated 12.5 kilograms (27 pounds) of explosives (including) TNT from his home," he told reporters. "They also seized several bombs that were ... ready to use and explode."
Jemaah Islamiyah, believed to be headed now by Afghan-trained militant Abu Dujana, has carried out four major attacks in Indonesia targeting Western interests since Sept. 11, 2001.