Shared intelligence prevented terror attacks
Malaysiakini.com
Dec 11, 2006

Malaysia today said sharing quality intelligence with Indonesia had prevented militants from launching any major regional terror attacks since the second Bali bomb blast last year.

"Malaysia and Indonesia are quite pleased with the situation. There are many factors behind it," Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said.

"One of the factors is that we have been able to have quality preemptive intelligence reports to nip it in the bud," he told reporters.

A triple suicide bombing last October on the resort island of Bali in Indonesia killed 20 people and the bombers.

Najib, who is also the defence minister, said by obtaining intelligence early, authorities could detect groups that plan to conduct "acts of terrorism" long before they are able to do anything.

He cited the example of Malaysian police's move against a local terror group, Darul Islam, in Sabah before it could mount an attack.

"One example of the success is the uncovering of the militant group Darul Islam in Sabah. This is an example of the preemptive work we have done," he said.

Twelve arrested

Malaysian police in May said they had crushed the militant group's underground network, which had collaborated with Indonesian militants, through multiple arrests between March and April.

Reports said 12 men - six Malaysians, three Indonesians and three Filipinos - are in custody under a tough security law, while one male Filipino has been released.

The group was believed to have been a logistics, transportation and financial support unit for Jemaah Islamiah (JI) militants.

JI is believed to be the Al-Qaeda network's arm in Southeast Asia and is on the US list of foreign terrorist organizations.

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