- MORE than 15,000 Indonesians have signed up to travel
to Iraq and fight the US, the militant Islam Defendersâ Front claimed
yesterday.
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- The radical organisationâs leader, Habib Muhammed
Riziq Shihab, told The Australian that 1400 people from Jakarta, and 6,500
people from the rest of Java had signed up as mujahadin, or holy warriors,
as well as more than 7,000 from Sumatra. Data from outlying provinces had
yet to come in.
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- "The first to go (to Iraq) will be those who are
spiritually and mentally ready," he said.
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- "And especially those who have had combat experience
in Ambon (in Maluku, where civil war has been raging for four years), Poso
(a strife-torn province in central Sulawesi), Bosnia and Afghanistan. From
the rest, we will conduct a selection process to get the best candidates
to send to Iraq."
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- The Defendersâ Front, which was disbanded for a
time recently, was notorious for raiding "immoralââ venues
such as nightclubs and bars, and extorting protection money from the owners.
It has re-opened after an internal cleansing, and now has turned its energies
to the Iraq war, staging demonstrations and launching the registration
of mujahadin.
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- Mr Shihab said he would ask the Indonesian government
for financial support for the mujahadin project, and if that failed to
materialise he would turn to wealthy donors. He said money had already
been collected for the program, although he declined to say how much.
-
- The manner and route of the mujahadinsâ journey
had yet to be decided, he added, but the Defendersâ Front had a logistician
in the Middle East who would provide advice.
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- Mr Shihab said he was not worried the US would claim
victory any time soon, because the Iraqis were tough and experienced fighters.
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- The Australian
- http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,6183720%255E25777,00.html
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- Source: American Freedom News.com
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