SFOR Officer linked to Al-Qaeda

Report: Former Malaysia army officer had al-Qaeda links
Deutsche Presse-Agentur - March 1, 2003

Kuala Lumpur - A former army officer arrested last week for involvement with the Muslim militant Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) organization also had direct contacts with the international terrorist group al-Qaeda, a report said Saturday.

The former army officer, Abdul Manaf Kamsuri, was arrested last Thursday under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for his alleged JI involvement. According to The New Straits Times newspaper, Kamsuri's contact with al-Qaeda came while he was serving with the United Nations peacekeeping forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

"We monitored his movements since he started serving in the peacekeeping mission," Defence Minister Najib Razak was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times newspaper.

"He was the only one who made contact while in Bosnia, and was subsequently asked to retire," he added.

Surveillance showed that Abdul Manaf acted on his own and did not influence others in the force, the story said. Arrest under the Internal Security Act allows for indefinite detention without trial.

"The ministry is continuing to keep a close watch on all the military personnel on overseas mission," Najib said.

Abdul Manaf is the third former or current military personnel to have been arrested under the ISA for alleged involvement with a terrorist organisation. Last month, a Royal Malaysian Air Force sergeant was arrested for alleged links with the J.I.

Last year, a former army captain who is a biochemist was arrested for alleged links with two of the hijackers involved in the September 11 attacks. He was also alleged to have met the "20th hijacker", Zacharias Moussaoui, in 2000.

Moussaoui is now standing trail in the United States for involvement in the attacks.