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Exposing the role that Islamic jihad theology and ideology play in the modern global conflicts

Indonesia: President whom foes say is insufficiently Islamic to release Muslim cleric behind Bali jihad massacre

Jan 20, 2019 8:00 am By Robert Spencer

Joko Widodo is proving his Islamic bona fides.

“Indonesia leader to free radical cleric behind Bali bombings,” by Niniek Karmini, Pattaya Mail, January 19, 2019:

Jakarta, Indonesia (AP) — The ailing 80-year-old radical cleric who inspired the Bali bombers and other violent extremists in Indonesia will be released from prison, Indonesia’s president said Friday, slashing a 15-year sentence.

The announcement of Abu Bakar Bashir’s imminent release came during campaigning for a presidential election due in April in which opponents of President Joko Widodo have tried to discredit him as insufficiently Islamic.

“I have considered this decision for a long time, involving the National Police chief and legal experts,” Widodo told reporters. “This release was decided because of humanitarian considerations and also related to his health care.”

The 2002 bombings on the popular Indonesian tourist island of Bali by al-Qaida-affiliated Jemaah Islamiyah militants killed 202 people, many of them foreigners including dozens of Australians.

Australia urged Indonesia last March against any leniency toward Bashir when the government was considering house arrest and other forms of clemency….

The firebrand cleric was arrested almost immediately after the Bali bombings. But prosecutors were unable to prove a string of terrorism-related allegations. He was instead sentenced to 18 months in prison for immigration violations.

In 2011, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison for supporting a military-style training camp for Islamic militants….

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Filed Under: Featured, Indonesia Tagged With: Abu Bakar Bashir, Joko Widodo


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Comments

  1. Matt says

    Jan 20, 2019 at 8:15 am

    still can’t get my head around this title

    • PRCS says

      Jan 20, 2019 at 8:26 am

      (Probably should be) Indonesia: President who foes say is insufficiently Islamic to release Muslim cleric behind Bali jihad massacre

      • mortimer says

        Jan 20, 2019 at 8:59 am

        No, you do not understand the accusative case.

    • gravenimage says

      Jan 22, 2019 at 11:14 pm

      Matt, this means that even Muslims considered not to be Islamic enough still enable Jihad–as the Indonesian president is doing in releasing this Jihadist.

  2. Paul says

    Jan 20, 2019 at 8:17 am

    I have drank in the collection of beer bars he had blown up in Bali. No purpose other than destruction of innocent western lives. Bali is a Hindu island, famed for its culture. The Javanese are hated by the locals as they sell drugs. But still they come for the easy money they get from drug tourists.

    The muslims want to destroy our culture of happiness and peace.
    There is no fun in Islam. There is no peace with Islam.

    Paul

    • mortimer says

      Jan 20, 2019 at 9:04 am

      Supremacists want to be supreme at all costs. They foolishly believe that Allah will help them.

      In fact, the police will help these terrorists to an early grave or a life sentence.

    • gravenimage says

      Jan 22, 2019 at 11:15 pm

      Scary, Paul.

  3. PRCS says

    Jan 20, 2019 at 8:27 am

    Another “radical”, eh?

  4. mortimer says

    Jan 20, 2019 at 9:01 am

    The president is ‘INSUFFICIENTLY ISLAMIC’? That means that others are MORE ISLAMIC THAN THOU.

    This tantamount to saying the president should be removed from office. Islamists believe that a ruler who doesn’t enforce Sharia may be removed violently.

    This slight against the president falls just short of a call for his assassination and he realizes it.

  5. Islamaphone says

    Jan 20, 2019 at 2:59 pm

    Perhaps Australia should stop forking over A$300mil p.a. “aid” to its northern neighbor?

    • Jon Sobieski says

      Jan 20, 2019 at 4:09 pm

      Right. Same thing with the USA giving to countries who HATE us. The Australian politicians are wondering how this could be done? They still don’t get it. They are infidels, they should be thankful he was punished with a few years in prison. By prison, I mean leading a privileged position in the so called prison.

    • abu taleb says

      Jan 21, 2019 at 5:16 am

      Why don’t Australia and other countries help the Christians (and other non muslims) in Indonesia and other countries? It is those people who become the first victims of the Islamic attacks, and yet, they are abandoned by the world.

      • Brian hoff says

        Jan 21, 2019 at 11:22 am

        Bad idea since since it would lead to the minority being hit hard. The christian faith is treat alot better than they are in North Jorea.

        • gravenimage says

          Jan 22, 2019 at 11:46 pm

          Is “Brian hoff”–really, “DefenderofIslam” admitting that if Infidel nations said anything in support of Christians that Muslims would go on murderous rampages?

          And note that *North Jorea* (North Korea, one presumes) is this thugs standard of human rights. *Ugh*.

          And he wants to do this *to us*–“Brian hoff” has said that when Muslims reach large enough numbers that they will impose brutal Sharia’ah law in the US.

  6. tim gallagher says

    Jan 20, 2019 at 5:01 pm

    Over 200 people were killed in the terrorist bombing in Bali that this loathsome, almost always smiling Muslim scumbag (er, firebrand cleric calling for non-Muslims to be killed in the usual Muslim way)inspired and arranged and he only gets 8 years. I’m sure he was treated like a hero in gaol during his sentence. Australia is in a difficult position in having the country with the biggest population of Muslims in the world, Indonesia, right on its doorstop. Indonesia is up near 200 million people and Australia 25 million. As Islamophone says above, I guess Australia keeps giving money to the enemy Muslim country of Indonesia to try to keep the peace a bit. It’s probably a waste of time because Muslims are always the enemy of non-Muslim countries. It’s them or us. In Australia, we have around 2% Muslims and plenty of trouble already. I wanted to make a comment that some recent developments in Australia may help to end the Muslim threat in Australia. Australia runs a non-discriminatory migration policy. If you write to the Australian Government and ask them to end Muslim migration (as I’ve done), they reply and tell you Australia doesn’t discriminate on grounds of race, religion,etc. I figure if Nazism ( similar to Islam) called itself a religion, then the Australian Government wouldn’t discriminate against it. However, Australia has had a huge level of immigration over recent years and people are really getting annoyed about how overcrowded our cities (the roads, hospitals, all the infrastructure) are rapidly becoming. People are getting really angry in the cities. Hence, the recent survey where 7 out of 10 Australians said they want migration levels reduced. A lowering of immigration levels will mean less Muslims along with all other groups. I’ve always thought Muslims would continually push for becoming a far bigger percentage of Australia’s population and then try to take over the way they always do ( eg some European countries). Maybe, with lowered levels of immigration in general, Muslims will remain at only 2% or so. I”d prefer to end all Muslim migration, but keeping Muslim numbers fairly low (percentage wise) could help keep Australia reasonably safe. I think Australians getting fed up with recent very high levels of immigration is a promising development. This release of Abu Bakar Bashir is not getting much attention in the news so far in Australia.

    • Paul J says

      Jan 20, 2019 at 6:53 pm

      Only going to get worse when Labor/Greens get in this year

    • PRCS says

      Jan 20, 2019 at 7:53 pm

      Hey, tim.

      “This release of Abu Bakar Bashir is not getting much attention in the news so far in Australia.”

      What sources do give it attention? Television? Newspapers? Other?

      • tim gallagher says

        Jan 20, 2019 at 8:19 pm

        PRCS, I saw reports about the upcoming release of Abu Bakar Bashir on a couple of the evening TV news reports. I think they were a couple of nights back. They would have been on Channel 7, 9 or 10 as I never go near the left wing ABC news. I didn’t pay much attention to them as the sight of this scumbag Bashir’s moronic smile makes me sick. Last night, I listened to a few minutes of radio talkback on 2GB after I’d watched some of the Big Bash cricket and they were talking about Bashir on the radio. I don’t bother with newspapers so I’m not sure about them. But this morning I heard no mention of it on the radio and nothing on morning TV news reports which I glanced at. That’s what I was referring to. I thought it would be in the news a bit this morning. I doubt whether it is going to get much attention. It’s a disgusting example of injustice to let a man involved in murdering over 200 people out of gaol. Unfortunately, as I said above, it probably doesn’t matter whether they kept him in gaol ( although he should have died there) as I’m sure he was treated like royalty in gaol in Indonesia.

        • PRCS says

          Jan 20, 2019 at 11:24 pm

          A common malady in the West.

          I’m pretty sure that news outlets know what the problem with Islam is, but as has been noted here–at least–the situation is whitewashed to avoid offending the offenders.

          Though coverage that most recent attack, in which a Sydney restaurateur was stabbed to death was pretty good (IMO), it didn’t last very long.

        • tim gallagher says

          Jan 20, 2019 at 11:46 pm

          I agree, PRCS. One of the good things about this Jihad Watch website is that it reports on a lot of the evil acts carried out by Muslims that the mainstream media choose to ignore. I’ve mentioned this before, but something that annoys me is the way that the mainstream media rarely say “Muslim” or “Islamic” terrorist attack on the TV news out here in Australia. In a way, it doesn’t matter because almost all of us know by now that it will have been Muslims who have carried out the act. The news report will just a say a “terrorist attack”. I think that is dishonest. If it is a Muslim terrorist attack, and it almost always is, it should be spelled out clearly that it’s a Muslim terrorist attack. It’s evading the truth a bit. I think that the murder of that restaurateur a while back got a fair bit of attention because he was a pretty famous man in the city. Enormous numbers of people had visited his restaurant over the years. It is ridiculous to be bothered about “offending the offenders”.

        • tim gallagher says

          Jan 20, 2019 at 11:56 pm

          I just noticed your comment, Paul J. You’re right. They’ll be pathetic on the issue of keeping Muslims out of Australia. Australia will be in big trouble when ( because they seem certain to win the next election) Labor get into power. It’s definitely a big worry.

  7. Jeremiah says

    Jan 20, 2019 at 7:04 pm

    Australia is not yet willing to admit that Islam is a problem. Whether it is bombings in Bali or antisemitism in Malaysia, Australia thinks in terms of aid rather than in terms of reality. Logically, Australia would provide no assistance to Islam and any nation that abuses women or indoctrinates children. To think that hope through aid will solve these problems is to ignore a 1400 year history of treachery and the teaching of Islam.

    • PRCS says

      Jan 20, 2019 at 7:51 pm

      Quite agree.

      The only thing that will cause that to happen, however: when an informed electorate finally decides to throw the bums out.

  8. UNCLE VLADDI says

    Jan 21, 2019 at 8:50 am

    Ever notice how Joko looks almost exactly like ObaMo?

  9. Marigold says

    Jan 21, 2019 at 10:20 am

    The MSM in Australia did mention Bashir’s imminent release and showed his lawyer saying that he had done nothing wrong because everything he said was in the Koran. He said he had been made a scapegoat for the terrorist attack. The report I saw also said that the Indonesians are going to release a Christian who was imprisoned for blasphemy at the same time. They didn’t say whether he/she had blasphemed Mohammed or Islam.The Indonesian economy suffered badly after the Bali attack and miltant Islamists in Indonesia would think the President in not Islamic enough

  10. WPM says

    Jan 21, 2019 at 10:52 am

    The crazy thing is there will most likely be riots by Moslems for releasing the “blasphemer” whose life will be endanger if he or she stays in Indonesia .The Jihadist will get a hero welcome in his own home town I am sure. Indonesia is consider a “moderate” Islam majority country letting Jihadist go free while arresting “blasphemers” in the first place is main steam Islam as we all know here at jihad watch. Appeasing jihadist only encourages more jihad, I see this country economy going down the sh*t as western tourist, western companies find it too expensive or dangerous to visit or set up and try to do business there.

  11. gravenimage says

    Jan 22, 2019 at 11:18 pm

    Indonesia: President whom foes say is insufficiently Islamic to release Muslim cleric behind Bali jihad massacre
    ……………..

    Disgusting–but no surprise.

  12. Spoor says

    Jan 23, 2019 at 6:26 am

    And his supporter base praise him for being ‘pragmatic’ by appeasing hardliners. This is the guy who used seculars and liberals as his political vehicle in 2014 and now that’s no longer enough to keep him in power court the radical muslim, even by making a radical cleric that was responsible for the jakarta’s governor imprisonment on charge of blasphemy as his running mate.

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