MALAYSIA RELEASES SIX MORE ISA DETAINEES LINKED TO

S E C R E T KUALA LUMPUR 001996 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP/MTS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/20/2026 TAGS: PTER PREL PINR ASEC MY SUBJECT: MALAYSIA RELEASES SIX MORE ISA DETAINEES LINKED TO JEMAAH ISLAMIYAH REF: KUALA LUMPUR 01977 Classified By: Political Section Chief Mark D. Clark for reasons 1.4 b, c, d ¶1. (SBU) Following the unexpected October 18 release of 11 prisoners from Internal Security Act (ISA) detention (reftel),late on October 19 Malaysia freed an additional six detainees who had been held for suspected links to terrorism. The six men are all Malaysian citizens originally arrested and held for their association with the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) regional terrorist group. As with the group of 11, Prime Minister and concurrent Internal Security Minister Abdullah Badawi signed the release orders for the six men in an action timed to coincide with the imminent Aidul Fitri holiday. The release orders for the 17 men freed October 18-19 include parole conditions such as regular check-ins with local police, movement restrictions to assigned locales, and prohibitions on international travel. ¶2. (U) The names of the ISA detainees released on October 19 are as follows: Alias bin Othman Jafar bin Saldin Mohd Amin bin Musa Mohd Nasri bin Ismail Sharil bin Hat Yusrin bin Haiti ¶3. (S/NF) Individuals released on October 19 had been detained for three to four years for demonstrating significant ties in the past to terrorist groups, particularly JI. Their various suspected activities included funding JI activities through front companies, training in the Philippines with Muslim militant groups, and storage of large amounts of explosives designed for use in terrorist attacks. Alias bin Othman reportedly received training from Malaysian JI bombing mastermind Azahari. ¶4. (S/NF) Among the 17 men released, Malaysian authorities have identified retired Malaysian army lieutenant colonel Abdul Manaf Kasmuri and Ahmad Tauzi Tarman (aka Pozi) as deserving of the greatest continued scrutiny. LAFLEUR