Noordin Mohammed Top, Asia's most wanted terrorist, committed suicide after a 12-hour standoff with Indonesian police in a remote farm house in Central Java.
Police made visual confirmation of Top through cameras attached to remote control robots that were deployed into the house and watched as he fled into a bathroom and, surrounded by a woman and three children, blew himself up, Metro TV reported. The explosion occurred at 8 am Saturday local-time (9 pm EDT Friday) and was carried on live television.
Top was a senior leader in Jemaah Islamiyah and was originally from Malaysia. He was known as a top recruiter, strategist, and fundraiser, and was behind the most deadly terror attacks in Indonesia. He
masterminded the October 2002 Bali bombings, which killed 202 people and injured 209; the August 2003 Marriott Hotel bombing in Jakarta; the September 2004 bombing of the Australian Embassy in Jakarta; and the October 2005 Bali bombings. He split from Jemaah Islamiyah in late 2005 after disagreement over the use of violence with other leaders and became the emir of Tandzim al-Qaedat Indonesia. While ties between Top's group and al Qaeda have not yet been confirmed, his group has run Web forums that have collaborated with Jihadi forums known to be associated with al Qaeda. One such forum released an Indonesian-language propaganda video with the well-known al-Ekhlaas Forum in early 2008.
Temanggung Raid
Indonesia's elite counterterrorism police unit Detachment 88 (Densus 88) descended on the farm house in Temanggung village late Thursday night after receiving multiple tips that Top had recently rented it. The house was quietly put under surveillance and police tracked people who came and went from the residence. By Friday afternoon, police had detained five terror suspects, according to Detik News. Interrogations confirmed that Top was indeed there.
Approximately 15 Densus 88 personnel, including snipers, secured the neighborhood and surrounded the house Friday evening. They called for the remaining suspects to give up. After firing a warning shot on the house at 7:15 PM Friday evening, a shootout ensued. Based on sporadic shots being fired from inside the house, police sources told Detik News that the suspects appeared to be low on ammunition and possibly had only two long barreled weapons, including an AK-47. However, the police were concerned about the risk of booby traps and kept a safe distance from the house.
At 6:30 AM, police were able to shoot out one of the house's two doors and deployed cameras mounted on remote control robots. Live television coverage on Metro TV showed police storm the house to deploy the robots and then promptly retreat. A small explosion was seen inside the house, which shattered the windows.
Densus 88 was able to make
a visual confirmation of Top and also revealed the presence of three children and a woman believed to be their grandmother, Kompas reported. Sources also told local media that Top was suffering from gunshot wounds.
At approximately 8 AM, a large explosion blew a hole in the roof. Police followed with sustained gun fire for 15 minutes targeting the location of the bathroom.
A police source told Metro TV that Top was seen on the robot cameras retreating into a bathroom with the woman and children. He was then seen detonating a bomb. All four were killed instantly.
Latest police sketch of wanted terrorist Noordin Mohammed Top, who was killed during a raid in central Java in Indonesia. Click image for more pictures from the raid that killed top.snip
Read more:
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2009/08/noordin_mohammed_top.php#ixzz0NagLOjTA