Cleric to face questions over church killings

The alleged founder of the extreme Islamist group that is widely thought to be responsible for the Bali bombings is to be questioned by police about a spate of attacks on churches nearly two years ago.

Abu Bakar Ba'aysir, alleged founder and spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiyah, said he had received the summons and would attend the questioning about a series of church bombings on Christmas Eve 2000 which killed 19 people.

Indonesia's police chief, General Da'i Bachtiar, stressed last night that Mr Ba'aysir had yet to be linked to the Bali blasts, which killed at least 183.

Mr Ba'aysir's summons was a result of information gathered by three officers who returned to Indonesia yesterday from questioning an alleged key al-Qaida member, Omar al-Farouq in the United States.

Mr al-Farouq was detained in Indonesia in June and immediately deported at the behest of the US before Indonesian officials had a chance to question him. He has allegedly linked Mr Ba'aysir, 64, to himself, al-Qaida, assassination attempts on the Indonesian president Megawati Sukarnoputri and the church bombings

Mr Ba'aysir said his lawyer had received the summons but he had yet to read it himself. "As I've repeatedly said, as it is the rules, I will fulfil the summons. If I am detained later it doesn't matter. Of course [my innocence] will be proved in court," he said.

Mr Ba'aysir runs a boarding school in central Java, many of whose pupils have been detained in Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines on terrorism-related accusations. He insists he has never committed any terrorist act and is not a member of Jemaah Islamiyah.

Several countries, led by the US and Singapore, have urged Jakarta to arrest Mr Ba'aysir. He was questioned earlier this year in connection with alleged Jemaah Islamiyah activities in Singapore and Bali but released for lack of evidence.

Indonesia, which does not have an anti-terrorism law, has said it cannot arrest the cleric without firm evidence that he has committed a crime. If Mr Ba'aysir is detained western diplomats fear radical Muslim groups could create unrest.

One diplomat said: "If the government messes this up, there's no knowing where it might end."