Thirteen detained students were sent to Pakistan by their families to train for the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) terror network, a report said today.

The students, held under the Internal Security Act, were all sent to Pakistan in 1999 and 2000 and were expected to spread the message of the al-Qaeda linked JI on their return, according to the Malay-language Utusan Malaysia .

"They were all sent to undergo teachings ... to become the next real cadre of JI," it quoted a police official as saying.

"Upon their return, they would have been used to spread the influence of JI in religious schools in Malaysia and Indonesia," he added.

The source also said many of the 13, whose families had established links with JI, had previously been sent for military training in Kashmir and Afghanistan.

The 13 are being held for interrogation by police under the Act which allows detention without trial after they were deported from Pakistan on Monday.

The next generation

The students, who were studying at two institutions in Karachi, were detained by Pakistan authorities in September on suspicion of being involved in militant activities.

Deputy Home Minister Chor Chee Heung last month said the 13 students were being trained as future leaders of the JI network, accused of being responsible for a string of terror attacks including the Bali bombing in Indonesia which killed 202 people.

He said investigations revealed some of the students were children of alleged JI members already in detention in Malaysia, and had received preliminary training at an Islamic school in the country run in the past by senior JI figures.

Malaysia has detained 94 suspected Islamic militants over the past two years, with 69 of them allegedly JI members, police said. - AFP