A masked man believed to be Noordin M. Top, a senior operative of Jemaah Islamiah, has threatened the West in a video.
Masked militant threatens West (Reuters)
A masked man believed to be one of Asia’s most wanted militants has warned Western countries, especially Australia, of more attacks in a video found last week by Indonesian anti-terrorist police.
The video was broadcast on Indonesia’s Metro TV on Thursday. Vice President Jusuf Kalla, quoted by the Kompas newspaper, said he believed the militant on the tape was Malaysian Noordin M. Top, a senior operative of Jemaah Islamiah, a Southeast Asian group seen as the regional arm of al Qaeda.
“We repeat that America, Australia, England and Italy are all our enemies,” said the militant, wearing a black balaclava and constantly pointing his right finger in the air. “We especially remind Australia that you, Downer and Howard, are killing Australia, leading it into darkness and misfortune and mujahideen terror,” he said, referring to Australia’s Prime Minister John Howard and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer. “Know that as long as you (all) continue to colonize the land of Iraq and Afghanistan and intimidate Muslims then you too will feel our intimidation and terror.”
The video marks the first time militant threats have been made on tapes found in the world’s most populous Muslim nation, a practice common among radicals in the Middle East.
Downer said Australia was taking the tape seriously but would not be cowed. “No democratic country like Australia should be intimidated by a fanatic like Noordin Top,” Downer told reporters in the Australian city of Adelaide.
The militant also warned anyone who supported U.S. President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair. “We remind that those who support Bush and Blair are also our enemies. The infidel rulers, the apostate rulers, those who oppress Muslims and victimize ulamas, the mujahideen, they are our enemies too. The ones we target in our attacks,” the militant said.
In a different context, this would all be rather funny. The dialog on the tape is idiotic. The video was found in a raid and only given any effect because it was broadcast on television after, presumably, being turned over to the network by the government.
