August 29, 2010

Thousands flee as long-sleepy Sumatra volcano erupts

Filed under: Asia,Indonesia,South East Asia — mungurk @ 08:10

JAKARTA (Reuters) – Thousands of Indonesians were evacuated from the slopes of a volcano on Sunday after it erupted for the first time in more than 400 years, spewing out lava and sending smoke and dust 1,500 metres (5,000 feet) into the air.

Mount Sinabung, in the north of the island of Sumatra, began erupting around midnight after rumbling for several days, prompting some villagers to panic before the mass evacuation got under way.

Indonesia is on the so-called Pacific Rim of Fire, an arc of volcanoes and geological fault lines triggering frequent earthquakes around the Pacific Basin. The eruption triggered the highest red volcano alert.

Two people died, one from breathing problems and the other from a heart attack, and two suffered injuries in road accidents as trucks, ambulances and buses were mobilised in the rescue operation.

“This is the first time since 1600 that Sinabung has erupted and we have little knowledge in terms on its eruptive patterns,” said Surono, head of Indonesia’s vulcanology centre.

Authorities took at least 12,000 people from high risk areas on the slopes of the 2,460-metre volcano to temporary shelters. Local TV showed showed women and children wearing face masks in cramped tents.

The area around the volcano is largely agricultural.

“Since this is the first eruption we’ve had in Sinabung, we’re anticipating residents to remain at the shelters for at least a week while waiting for further status alert,” said Priyadi Kardono, a spokesman at the national disaster management agency.

Residents panicked when the volcano started erupting overnight and some of them who live in safer areas chose to take refugee at shelters, Kardono added.

The eruption has not damage roads or bridges. The nearest big city is Medan where there were no disruptions to flights.

(Reporting by Karima Anjani; Editing by Nick Macfie)

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August 25, 2010

Ten things the Philippines bus siege police got wrong

Filed under: Asia,Philippines,South East Asia,Terrorism,target.bus — mungurk @ 09:40

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A security analyst who has worked in counter-terrorism with the British Army and Scotland Yard, Charles Shoebridge, says the officers involved in Manila’s bus siege showed great courage – but they were not properly trained or equipped for the task.

Here are 10 areas where, in his view, they could have done better.

1. Determination

Philippine police end Manila bus hijack

The first officers who tried to storm the bus were driven out by gunshots from the hostage taker, former policeman Rolando Mendoza. “They showed great courage to go on board. It’s very crowded, just one aisle down the middle of the bus. But once you get on board it’s not unexpected you are going to be fired at. Squads like this have to be made up of very special people, specially trained and selected for their characteristics of courage, determination and aggression. In this case they acted as 99% of the population would have, which was to turn round and get out. They didn’t seem to have the necessary determination and aggression to follow the attack through.”

2. Lack of equipment

The police spent a long time smashing the windows of the bus, whereas explosive charges (known as frame charges) would have knocked in windows and doors instantly. “They had no ladders to get through the windows. They smashed the windows but didn’t know what to do next,” Mr Shoebridge says. “They almost looked like a group of vandals.” Their firearms were also inappropriate – some had pistols, some had assault rifles. Ideally they would have carried a short submachine gun, suitable for use in confined spaces.

3. Lost opportunity to disarm the gunman

Mendoza’s gun was not always raised

There were numerous opportunities to restrain the gunman, Mr Shoebridge believes. “The negotiators were so close to him, and he had his weapon hanging down by his side. He could have been disabled without having to kill him.”

4. Lost opportunity to shoot the gunman

The video of the drama also shows there were occasions when the gunman was standing alone, during the course of the day, and could have been shot by a sharpshooter. “You are dealing with an unpredictable and irrational individual. The rule should be that if in the course of negotiations an opportunity arises to end the situation decisively, it should be taken,” Mr Shoebridge says. Either this possibility did not occur to the officers in charge, he adds, or they considered it and decided to carry on talking.

5. Satisfying the gunman’s demands

“I wondered why the authorities just didn’t give in to all of his demands,” says Charles Shoebridge. “A promise extracted under force is not a promise that you are required to honour. Nobody wants to give in to the demands of terrorists, but in a situation like this, which did not involve a terrorist group, or release of prisoners, they could have just accepted his demands. He could be reinstated in the police – and then be immediately put in prison for life for hostage taking.” The Philippines authorities did in fact give in to the gunman’s demands, but too little, too late. One message promised to review his case, while he wanted it formally dismissed. A second message reinstating him as a police offer only arrived after the shooting had started.

6. Televised proceedings

The gunman was able to follow events on television, revealing to him everything that was going on around him. This was a “crucial defect in the police handling”, Mr Shoebridge says. He adds that police should always consider putting a barrier or screen around the area, to shield the scene from the cameras and keep the hostage taker in the dark.

7. No element of surprise

It was clear to the gunman what the police were doing at all times, not only because the whole incident was televised, but also because they moved “laboriously slowly”, Mr Shoebridge says. The police did not distract him, so were unable to exploit the “crucial element of surprise”.

8. Safeguarding the public

This boy, a bystander, was hit by a stray bullet

At least one bystander was shot, possibly because the public was allowed too close. The bullet from an M16 rifle, as carried by the gunman, can travel for about a mile, so preventing any risk of injury would have been difficult, Mr Shoebridge says, but a lot more could have been done. “When you saw the camera view from above, it was clear there was little command and control of the public on the ground,” he says.

9. Using the gunman’s brother to negotiate

Relatives and close friends can be a double-edged sword, Mr Shoebridge says. While they may have leverage over the hostage taker, what they are saying cannot be easily controlled. In this case, the gunman’s brother was included in the negotiations – however, at a certain stage he became agitated and police started to remove him from the scene. The gunman saw this on television, and became agitated himself. According to one report he fired a warning shot.

10. Insufficient training

In some parts of the Philippines, such as Mindanao, hostage taking is not an uncommon occurrence, so the country has some forces that are well trained in the necessary tactics. The detachment involved in Monday’s incident clearly was not, says Mr Shoebridge. After smashing the windows, one of the officers eventually put some CS gas inside, though “to what effect was not clear” he says. A unit involved in this work, needs to be “trained again and again, repeatedly practising precisely this kind of scenario,” he says.

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June 4, 2010

Indonesia Sees Danger in Upcoming Obama Visit

Filed under: Americas,Asia,Counterterrorism,Indonesia,North America,South East Asia,Terrorism,USA,groups.Jemaah Islamiyah — mungurk @ 10:22

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Indonesian anti-terror chief sees danger in Obama’s visit

Published: 3/06/2010 at 11:52 PM
Online news: Asia

Indonesia’s counter-terrorism chief Police Colonel Mohammed Tito Karanvian delivers his address before the Jakarta foreign correspondents forum in Jakarta. Karnavian said extremists could try to disrupt a planned visit by US President Barack Obama this month, although there was no evidence of a direct threat.

Police Colonel Mohammed Tito Karanvian said security forces had recently shattered a major new cell in the Muslim-majority country, the scene of repeated attacks including the 2002 Bali bombings which killed 202 people.

The group had targeted Westerners in Aceh province in the lead-up to Obama’s visit, which was initially scheduled for March, and some of its leaders were still on the loose, he said at a lunch with reporters.

“For the current plan of the visit by Obama we haven’t got any new information on a plot, but we need to pay attention and be very careful. Why? Because some of them remain at large,” Karnavian said.

“The idea was already there in February. We’re not really sure if the idea has already been deleted or not.”

The chief of the Detachment 88 anti-terror squad said police had arrested 61 terrorists and killed 13 since discovering the new cell’s training camp in Aceh in March, he said.

The Aceh cell was linked to the Jemaah Islamiyah regional terror network and other extremist groups bent on creating an Islamic caliphate across Southeast Asia, and inspired by Al-Qaeda’s ideology of “holy war”.

“This group, this network, has already attacked, we have at least four incidents against Western interests in Aceh,” Karnavian said.

“They had a plot during Obama’s visit to Jakarta (in March) to attack Banda Aceh,” he added, referring to the Aceh capital.

A bomb was thrown at a UN office in Banda Aceh late last year, a German aid worker was shot in November and a house shared by two US teachers was sprayed with gunfire in the same month. There were no fatalities in the incidents.

Obama spent four years of his childhood in Jakarta and his visit has been highly anticipated in his old home town.

The administration has still not confirmed a new arrival date, but the White House said Wednesday the trip would go ahead this month despite speculation it could be delayed again, this time over the BP oil spill.

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Burma Takes Steps Toward Nuclear Weapons

Filed under: Asia,Military,Myanmar/Burma,South Central Asia,WMD — mungurk @ 10:16

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Report says Burma is taking steps toward nuclear weapons program

By Joby Warrick

Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, June 4, 2010

The smuggled evidence shows Burma’s military rulers taking concrete steps toward obtaining atomic weapons, according to an analysis co-written by an independent nuclear expert. But it also points to enormous gaps in Burmese technical know-how and suggests that the country is many years from developing an actual bomb.

The analysis, commissioned by the dissident groupDemocratic Voice of Burma, concludes with “high confidence” that Burma is seeking nuclear technology, and adds: “This technology is only for nuclear weapons and not for civilian use or nuclear power.”

“The intent is clear, and that is a very disturbing matter for international agreements,” said the report, co-authored by Robert E. Kelley, a retired senior U.N. nuclear inspector. Officials for the dissident group provided copies of the analysis to the broadcaster al-Jazeera, The Washington Post and a few other news outlets.

Hours before the report’s release, Sen. James Webb (D-Va.) announced that he was canceling a trip to Burma, also known as Myanmar, to await the details. “It is unclear whether these allegations have substantive merit,” Webb, who chairs a Senate Foreign Relations panel on East Asia, said in a statement released by his office. “[But] until there is further clarification on these matters, I believe it would be unwise and potentially counterproductive for me to visit Burma.”

There have been numerous allegations in the past about secret nuclear activity by Burma’s military rulers, accounts based largely on ambiguous satellite images and uncorroborated stories by defectors. But the new analysis is based on documents and hundreds of photos smuggled out of the country by Sai Thein Win, a Burmese major who says he visited key installations and attended meetings at which the new technology was demonstrated.

The trove of insider material was reviewed by Kelley, a U.S. citizen who served at two of the Energy Department’s nuclear laboratories before becoming a senior inspector for the International Atomic Energy Agency. Kelley co-wrote the opposition group’s report with Democratic Voice of Burma researcher Ali Fowle.

Among the images provided by the major are technical drawings of a device known as a bomb-reduction vessel, which is chiefly used in the making of uranium metal for fuel rods and nuclear-weapons components. The defector also released a document purporting to show a Burmese government official ordering production of the device, as well as photos of the finished vessel.

Other photographs show Burmese military officials and civilians posing beside a device known as a vacuum glove box, which also is used in the production of uranium metal. The defector describes ongoing efforts on various phases of a nuclear-weapons program, from uranium mining to work on advanced lasers used in uranium enrichment. Some of the machinery used in the Burmese program appears to have been of Western origin.

The report notes that the Burmese scientists appear to be struggling to master the technology and that some processes, such as laser enrichment, likely far exceed the capabilities of the impoverished, isolated country.

“Photographs could be faked,” it says, “but there are so many and they are so consistent with other information and within themselves that they lead to a high degree of confidence that Burma is pursuing nuclear technology.”

A Washington-based nuclear weapons analyst who reviewed the report said the conclusions about Burma’s nuclear intentions appeared credible. “It’s just too easy to hide a program like this,” said Joshua H. Pollack, a consultant to the U.S. government.

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May 18, 2010

Large numbers of troops and military vehicles gather in Bangkok near protest zone

Filed under: Asia,Military,South East Asia,Thailand — mungurk @ 20:55

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Associated Press

- May 18, 2010

Thai troops fire guns from vantage points into encampment of protesters in central Bangkok

BANGKOK

BANGKOK (AP) — Thai troops have opened fire at a fortified encampment of anti-government protesters in central Bangkok.

Associated Press reporters saw the troops positioned on an overpass overlooking the encampment firing automatic rifles sporadically at the encampment Wednesday. There was no sustained shooting.

Some troops were also seen crouching on the elevated tracks of a light rail system that runs over the encampment.

The firing came after a large number of troops and armored carriers gathered at the edges of the encampment at daybreak amid reports of a final assault on the camp the protesters have occupied for weeks.

At least 39 people have been killed and more than 300 people wounded in seven days of clashes in Bangkok.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

BANGKOK (AP) — Thai troops and armored vehicles gathered early Wednesday at the edges of the barricaded encampment of anti-government protesters in downtown Bangkok and fired tear gas in what appeared to be the start of a final crackdown to disperse them.

“This is D-Day,” said one soldier when asked if this was the final push.

Sporadic gunfire was heard at daybreak after overnight rumors of a military push to clear the thousands of protesters. Soldiers extended their blockades around the protest site and used loudspeakers to tell all people to return to their homes. Smoke billowed above the city skyline as a government building was on fire in another part of Bangkok.

At least 39 people have been killed and more than 300 people wounded in seven days of clashes in Bangkok between the protesters and troops. All but one of those killed are civilians who were shot.

Hundreds of troops and police, many armed with M-16 assault rifles, were seen in nearby streets and alleys. Three armored personnel carriers were parked in front of the upscale Dusit Thani hotel, across the street from the southern edge of the barricade. Their machine gun mountain turrets pointed toward the barricade wall of tires and bamboo sticks, and troops crouched behind the vehicles.

Soldiers were overheard saying on a military communications radio that troops had entered Lumpini Park, which is behind the barricade.

Wednesday’s troop movement appeared to be the final push by the troops to clear the encampment that the protesters have occupied since mid-May to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, dissolution of Parliament and immediate elections.

It came after Abhisit rejected protesters’ unconditional offer to negotiate Tuesday and insisted there would be no talks until the dwindling anti-government movement abandoned its encampment in Rajprasong, a ritzy area of central Bangkok.

On Tuesday, protest leaders argued over whether they should continue to resist the crackdown. The government estimated that only 3,000 people remain in the downtown encampment, down from 5,000 on Sunday and 10,000 last week.

After a meeting with senators, at least one Red Shirt leader appeared to offer an immediate, unconditional cease-fire to end the violence — a prospect that was met with jeers at the main protest site.

Another leader said any truce would not mean an end to the protest.

“We have come too far to surrender,” said Jatuporn Prompan, a key protest leader. “We are negotiating to have them stop killing, but not to surrender.” He also urged Red Shirt protesters in other provinces to decide their next move.

The protesters say the current administration came to power through manipulation of the courts and the backing of the powerful military, and that it goes against results of a 2007 election to restore democracy after a military coup.

The protesters’ two-month standoff deteriorated into street clashes Thursday after a military adviser to the Red Shirts was shot by an apparent sniper, just after the army surrounded the protest zone in an attempt to cut off supplies of food and water.

According to government figures, 67 people have died and more than 1,700 have been wounded since the Red Shirts began their Bangkok protest in March.

With no end to the protest in sight, authorities had announced that a two-day public holiday was being extended to Friday and there would continue to be a ban on selling gasoline in several Bangkok districts because rioters were using it to make weapons. Police also outlawed the sale of tires in the capital without a police permit because rioters were using them to set fires.

Previous attempts to negotiate an end to the standoff have failed. A government offer earlier this month to hold November elections fell apart after protest leaders made more demands.

The violence in Bangkok, a popular stop for tourists heading to Thailand’s world-famous beaches, has caused concern internationally.

The United Nations called for a negotiated solution to the crisis, saying Monday that “there is a high risk that the situation could spiral out of control.” It urged the military to show restraint and the protesters to “step back from the brink.”

Amnesty International condemned the military’s use of live ammunition in its bid to suppress the protest, saying in a statement that the government “cannot allow soldiers to essentially shoot at anyone within an area it wishes to control.”

The military defended its use of deadly but limited force, saying troops fired only to protect themselves and Bangkok’s citizens and did not pursue pre-emptive attacks.

“If they don’t move close to us, there won’t be any losses,” army spokesman Col. Sansern Kaewkamnerd said. The government has repeatedly blamed “terrorists” within the Red Shirt ranks for instigating violence.

___

Associated Press writers Denis D. Gray, Thanyarat Doksone, and Vijay Joshi contributed to this report. Additional research by Sinfah Tunsarawuth.

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March 29, 2010

Thailand: More bombs, shootings on Sunday night

Filed under: Asia,South East Asia,Terrorism,Thailand — mungurk @ 12:30

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More bombs, shootings on Sunday night

Published: 29/03/2010 at 03:34 PM
Online news: Local News

Bomb explosions in Chiang Mai on Sunday night, and gunmen open fire at two Bangkok Bank branches in Bangkok, one near former prime minister Banharn Silpa-archa’s Bangkok residence, and another in northern Phayao province.

Two explosions occurred in Chiang Mai in the North on Sunday night, in what police viewed as an attempt to create a disturbance.

In the first incident, an M26 hand grenade was hurled into the compound of the Administrative Court on Chiang Mai-Lampang road about 10.30pm. The grenade landed on the back yard of the court building and the explosion left a hole about 10cm deep.

A home-made bomb exploded about 11pm near a telephone booth on Moon Muang road, causing a little damage to the booth’s glass partitions.

Pol Col Sombat Supapa, deputy provincial police chief, said the two incidents were apparently intended to cause chaos.

In Phayao province, Dok Kham Tai district police reported on Monday morning that gunmen opened fire at the Bangkok Bank branch and threw ping pong bombs into the bank’s compound. The building was hit by more than 20 M16 rounds, causing damage to the wall and glass windows.

The attack occurred about 2am on March 27.

Pol Maj-Gen Jarin Insuwanno, the Phayao police chief, has set up a team to investigate Dok Kham Tai district police because the shooting took place on Saturday morning, but was not reported until Monday morning.

Phayao governor Cherdsak Chusri on Monday morning went to examine the damage to the bank.

In Bangkok, police said bullets were fired at two Bangkok Bank branches on Sunday night, one in Bang Yi Khan area and just 300 metres from the house of Chart Thai Pattana Party chief adviser Banharn.

A police officer is checking a bullet hole at a Bangkok Bank branch near ex-PM Banharns’ house.

Bang Phlat police chief Adisak Khunphan said they were informed of the attack on Monday morning, but the attack was made on Sunday night.

The shots caused damaged to the front of the bank. There were no injuries, he said.

Earlier on Sunday evening, police reported an attack on the bank’s Saphan Khao branch and found five bullets holes in the bank’s front door.

Police were examining video from the bank’s security cameras.

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January 7, 2010

Sayyaf frees hostage in Basilan after 4 months

Filed under: Asia,Counterterrorism,Philippines,South East Asia,Terrorism — mungurk @ 08:09

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01/06/2010 | 07:57 AM

(Updated) The Abu Sayyaf on Tuesday released its nineteen-year-old hostage after more than four months of holding him captive in Basilan, said Philippine National Police spokesman Chief Superintendent Leonardo Espina.

Donald John Capili, who was kidnapped by the bandit group on August 27, 2009, was released at 6:30 p.m. on January 5 in Barangay Baywas, Sumisilip, Basilan.

Espina credits the release of Capili to joint efforts of the Crisis Management Committee (CMC), the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the various local government units of the province, and the police.

Capili was turned over to CMC Chairman Vice Governor Al-Rasheed Sakkalahul at 8:30 PM of the same day, Espina said, adding that initial debriefing by the PNP and AFP was still ongoing.

Capili was kidnapped in Zamboanga del Norte’s Liloy town and was brought to Basilan by boat. He is the grandson of former Liloy town mayor Belchu Uy.

An earlier report quoted Lt. Col. Gamal Hayudini, regional chief of the military’s Civil Relations Group in Western Mindanao, as saying that Capili was fetched by an emissary of the vice governor and brought to a farmhouse where he would be handed over to his family.

“Donald is in good physical condition,” the military official said.

Hayudini did not give details of the release or who was behind the kidnapping, but authorities had previously linked the notorious Abu Sayyaf terrorist group to the incident.

Capili is a grandson of former Liloy town mayor Belchu Uy.

The Abu Sayyaf is still holding two Chinese citizens, Zi Shun Lu and Bo Shung Tan, in Basilan.

A third hostage, Filipino plywood factory worker Mark Singson, was beheaded last month in Basilan after his family and employer, Hitech Wood Craft Corporation in Maluso town, failed to pay the P1.5 million ransom demanded by the bandit group.

Some 20 gunmen disguised as soldiers raided the factory on November 10 and seized the trio.

The Abu Sayyaf and the larger Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) are both actively operating in Basilan and had been previously linked by the police and military to many kidnappings-for-ransom in the province.

The report did not mention if ransom was paid for Capili’s release. - Nikka Corsino/LBG, GMANews.TV

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December 16, 2009

Plane seized by Thais linked to alleged smugglers

Filed under: Asia,East Asia,Military,North Korea,South East Asia,Thailand — mungurk @ 09:14

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Dec 15, 10:09 AM EST

By GRANT PECK
Associated Press Writer

BANGKOK (AP) — A weapons-laden cargo plane impounded in Bangkok has links to at least two men accused of global arms trafficking, including one fighting extradition to the U.S. from Thailand, an analyst said Tuesday.

The five-man crew of the aircraft that arrived from North Korea – four from Kazakhstan and one from Belarus – have been charged with illegal arms possession and face up to 10 years in prison.

The men were being held at Bangkok’s high-security Klong Prem Central Prison, the current home to suspected Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, once dubbed the “Merchant of Death” for allegedly supplying weapons to dictators and warlords around the world.

Thai officials impounded the Ilyushin Il-76 transport plane when it landed in Bangkok on Saturday to refuel, and discovered what they said was 35 tons of explosives, rocket-propelled grenades, components for surface-to-air missiles and other armaments – exported in defiance of a U.N. embargo against North Korea.

Hugh Griffiths, a researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, told The Associated Press the aircraft was previously registered under a company named Beibars, which has been linked to Serbian arms trafficker Tomislav Damnjanovic.

In the past, it has also been registered with three companies identified by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control as firms controlled by Bout. The U.S. is trying to extradite Bout, who was arrested in March 2008 during a U.S.-led sting operation and subsequently indicted on four terrorism charges in New York.

Researchers said the arms were likely destined for African rebel groups or a rogue regime such as Myanmar. The aircraft’s documentation had falsely described its cargo as oil-drilling equipment, and declared it was bound for Sri Lanka. Thai officials are skeptical that that was the true destination.

Col. Supisarn Bhakdinarinath, head of the Thai police inspection team, estimated the value of the weapons at about 500-600 million baht ($15 million-18 million).

Supisarn said more serious charges, possibly carrying the death penalty, would be added because the haul included explosives.

Prison director Sopon Thititam-pruek said the crew members were being held in separate cells, and guards were keeping a close eye on them to prevent them from meeting Bout.

Griffiths said the past owners of the aircraft have been documented by the United Nations as trafficking arms to Liberia, Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Sudan and Chad. He said the plane also was used to ship arms from the Balkans to Burundi in October.

“They are like flocks of migrating birds, these aircraft. They change from one company to another because the previous company has either been closed down for safety reasons or been identified in a U.N. trafficking report,” Griffiths said.

Siemon Wezeman, a Senior Fellow at SIPRI, said the types of arms found in the aircraft – used to add firepower against planes and tanks in the arsenal of government forces – were typical of those used by insurgent movements, and raised suspicion they could be headed for an African rebel group.

Possible buyers included Sudan, which might pass the weapons to rebel groups in Chad, and Eritrea, which might keep them for its own arsenal or pass them on to warring factions in Somalia, said Christian LeMiere, editor of the London-based Jane’s Intelligence Weekly.

The United States, which is particularly concerned about North Korea selling weapons and nuclear technology in the Middle East, reportedly tipped off Thai authorities to the illicit cargo. The U.S. Embassy has declined to comment.

Impoverished North Korea is believed to earn hundreds of millions of dollars every year by selling missiles, missile parts and other weapons to countries such as Iran, Syria and Myanmar.

U.N. sanctions were imposed in June after the reclusive communist regime conducted a nuclear test and test-fired missiles. They are aimed at derailing North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, but also ban North Korea’s selling of any conventional arms.

—

Associated Press writers Grant Peck and Jane Fugal in Bangkok, Malin Rising in Stockholm, Misha Dzhindzhikhashvili in Tbilisi, Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow, and Foster Klug in Washington contributed to this report.

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December 13, 2009

Thailand detains plane filled with 35 tons of weapons from North Korea

Filed under: Asia,Counterterrorism,East Asia,Military,North Korea,South East Asia,Terrorism,Thailand — mungurk @ 09:57

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December 13, 2009 6:49 a.m. EST

Bangkok, Thailand (CNN) — Thai authorities seized a cargo aircraft carrying tons of weapons from North Korea during a refueling stop in Bangkok, a government official said.

The pilot told Thai authorities the aircraft was headed to Sri Lanka, but its final destination was unknown, according to Panitan Wattanayagorn, a spokesman for the Thai prime minister.

It contained about 35 tons of weapons, including rocket-propelled grenades, shoulder-launched rockets and tubes that may be missile components, the spokesman said.

The plane, which was detained Saturday, had five people onboard — four from Kazakhstan and one from Belarus. They will appear in court Monday on charges related to illegal weapons smuggling, the spokesman said.

Thai government officials acted after working with several intelligence agencies for several weeks, the spokesman said. The cargo was taken to a military base while the plane, which is registered in Georgia, remains at Don Muang.

Sri Lanka officials said there were no shipments scheduled in the country either by air or sea from North Korea.

“We have asked the Sri Lanka embassy in Bangkok to obtain details from the Thai authorities,” the ministry said. “We will have more information on the progress of their investigation later on Sunday.”

Such an aircraft could not have landed in any of Sri Lanka’s airports without prior authorization, officials in Colombo said.

Last year, two arm dealers were arrested in Thailand. The men’s arrest came after a series of events that involved law enforcement agencies from at least five countries, including two undercover agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Viktor Bout and his associate, Andrew Smulian, made millions of dollars delivering weapons and ammunition to warlords and militants, officials said.

Bout is accused of supplying weapons to war zones around the world — from Sierra Leone to Afghanistan. He has repeatedly said he has not broken any laws and the allegations against him are lies

A Thai court rejected a U.S. extradition request for Bout in August.

CNN’s Dan Rivers and journalist Iqbal Athas contributed to this report.

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December 10, 2009

Philippine forces hunt for hostages after beheading

Filed under: Asia,Counterterrorism,Philippines,South East Asia,Terrorism — mungurk @ 13:14

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Posted: 10 December 2009 1236 hrs

ZAMBOANGA, Philippines: Security forces scoured jungle in the southern Philippines Thursday for two factory workers held by Al Qaeda-linked militants, after the severed head of one hostage was dumped in a park.

Police and soldiers stepped up their search on the southern island of Basilan, but the Abu Sayyaf militants had so far eluded the dragnet, provincial police chief Superintendent Abubakar Tulawie said.

“We have been on their trail, but whenever we arrive at the site where they are last reported, they are already gone,” Tulawie told reporters.

Heavily armed gunmen from the Abu Sayyaf, listed by the United States as a terrorist organisation, kidnapped three workers from Hitech Wood Craft Corp. in Basilan’s Maluso town on November 10.

The Abu Sayyaf, which specialises in kidnappings for ransom, had demanded 1.5 million pesos (US$32,500) for the release of the trio, Tulawei said.

On Wednesday, the severed head of one of the hostages, Mark Singson, aged in his 20s, was found stuffed in a plastic bag after being dumped in a park on the island.

Residents had alerted police after fearing the package was a bomb.

Tulawei said the other two hostages – Michael Tan, 27 and Oscar Lu, 51 – were known to be alive as of Wednesday because they had been allowed to call their employer then.

Michael Tan is the son-in-law of the factory owner George Tan, who police said had ignored their warnings not to negotiate with the Abu Sayyaf.

Tulawie said the Abu Sayyaf made contact with the factory owner on Sunday to relay the ransom demand, giving him two days to raise the funds. The elder Tan failed to raise the money on time.

“They texted George Tan to pick up Singson’s severed head last night,” Tulawie said.

Al Rasheed Sakalahul, the island province’s vice governor, said the factory owner had repeatedly refused to cooperate with authorities.

Founded in the early 1990s with seed money from Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda network, the Abu Sayyaf or “Bearers of the Sword” initially fought for an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines.

It later morphed into a criminal organisation specialising in bombings and kidnappings targeting businessmen and foreign missionaries.

The group is blamed for the deaths of two American hostages snatched from an island getaway in 2001, as well the nation’s worst terror attack – the bombing of a ferry in Manila Bay in 2004 that claimed more than 100 lives.

US special forces have been rotating in small numbers in the south since 2001 to train Filipino soldiers in combating the Abu Sayyaf.

The assistance has led to the capture or deaths of many Abu Sayyaf leaders and the group’s numbers are believed to have fallen to 300-400 gunmen, down from a high of about 1,000 in the 1990s.

But it remains well entrenched in the jungles of Basilan and nearby Jolo island, thanks to support from local Muslim communities and its ability to attract fresh recruits from poor young men lured by promises of money.

The Abu Sayyaf was blamed for the beheading of a school principal on Jolo last month, just days before US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Manila to affirm security ties.

In September, two US soldiers were killed in a roadside bomb on Jolo in the deadliest attack on American forces so far by the militant group.

Abu Sayyaf attacks have left at least 48 Filipino soldiers and 70 insurgents dead since January, according to an AFP tally based on military reports.

- AFP/yb

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