Bomber denies link to Islamic extremist group: report
Taufik Abdul Halim told The Star newspaper from his Jakarta hospital bed that he had travelled to Indonesia on his own last year in solidarity with Muslims fighting Christians in the Maluku islands.
He admitted carrying a bomb which exploded in a Jakarta shopping mall a month ago, but said he had been awaiting instructions on what the target would be when it went off prematurely, the paper reported.
Taufik, who lost a leg in the blast which also injured two shoppers, said he had joined up with nine other locals in Indonesia and admitted his group bombed two Christian churches in Jakarta on July 22.
He said, however, that he was not involved in those blasts.
Local links
The police here launched an investigation after Taufik's arrest to establish whether he and three other locals allegedly involved in the shopping mall attack had links to a militant Islamic group here.
The "Malaysian Mujahideen Group" has been blamed for a spate of crimes including bombing a church and an Indian temple.
Ten alleged members of the group, including seven members of the opposition PAS, were detained without trial last month under the Internal Security Act (ISA).
PAS denies any wrongdoing by its members and accuses Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's government of simply trying to smear the party to undercut its growing support.
