The seeds of the October 2002 Bali bombing plot were probably sown in a hotel room in southern Thailand 10 months earlier.
At a secret meeting of operatives from South East Asian militant network Jemaah Islamiah, a man known as Hambali is believed to have ordered a new strategy of hitting soft targets, such as nightclubs and bars rather than high-profile sites like foreign embassies.
But it was not until August 2002 that Bali was chosen as the place to strike. The details of the attack were finalised in Bali between 6 and 10 October. The bombers apparently all had separate roles. A man called Idris, who was later jailed for another bomb attack, was accused of gathering funds and arranging transport and accommodation for the bombers.
Amrozi admitted to buying the chemicals and the minivan used in the Sari club blast. Ali Imron named Dulmatin as the man who helped assemble the bombs, and said a man called Abdul Ghoni mixed the explosives. Ali Imron said he helped make the main bomb, used at the Sari club.
He said a van loaded with explosives had been driven to Sari by a man called Jimi, who died in the blast. A man called Iqbal wore a vest with a bomb in it, which he detonated in Paddy’s Bar. “Their duty was to explode the bombs,” Ali Imron had said. “They were ready to die.”
Iqbal is known to have died in Paddy’s Bar. But Ali Imron also told police that the two bombs exploded prematurely, which could have caught Iqbal out, so it is unclear if he was on a suicide mission. All the individuals detained for playing a major role in the attacks have been sentenced – and Amrozi, Mukhlas and Imam Samudra were executed in November 2008.
Other key suspects are believed to have been killed by police before facing trial. Azahari Husin, a Malaysian who was alleged to be JI’s top bomb-making expert and to have helped assemble the Bali bombs, was killed in eastern Indonesian in November 2005. Another alleged bomb-maker, Noordin Mohammad Top, was killed in a raid in November 2009.
The attacks which killed 202 people in the resort of Kuta, Bali, were a team effort – but the aftermath provoked different reactions from those involved. Police said Imam Samudra stayed in Bali for several days after the bombing to survey the devastation he wrought and observe the reactions of people he affected. Ali Imron shed tears in court, and repeatedly expressed remorse for his actions. Amrozi laughed and joked about his case, giving a thumbs-up sign when he was convicted. He said he was happy to die a martyr.
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