Indonesia blames al-Qaeda for blast

After a crisis meeting of its cabinet, the Indonesian Government announced it believed al-Qaeda was responsible for the terrorist attack in Bali in which the death toll now stands at 183.

According to an Indonesian news service, the defence minister, Martori Abdul Bejalil, said: "I am sure that there is a link between al-Qaeda and what happened in Bali ... There is a professional and sophisticated terrorist movement. They can disappear right after the explosion."

Full Story: www.smh.com.au...

a pity we can't keep to one thread, I think. However, this source is only one and is emphatically not typical of local English-language or native-language press reaction.
On local reactions, there is a decent English language article here �very much �said�, �claimed�; but a good thermometer in terms of how the incident is being seen by some.
www.thejakartapost.com...
Similarly interesting is a piece of home-grown Aussie conspiracy theorising here
www.cyberspaceorbit.com... Again, this is more an assembling of events which do not in and of themselves justify any further conclusion; but the events are thought-provoking and as I have said earlier, I am intrigued that bin Ladin and Al-Qaida have suddenly re-entered GWB and friends� vocabularies after a very long absence at a point where domestic and international politics make it rather convenient for the current US administration (whether or not Skull and Bones, Bilderbuggers, the Men in Black or the Banana Bunch remains to be seen).
This is emphatically an intriguing co-incidence and I remain surprised that no one has claimed responsibility for the Bali atrocity � boasting about their evil deeds is, after all, what terrorists usually do.
There is a vast amount to be said in terms of local history, politics and power-groupings; but I don�t want to bore posters, unless someone follows up certain points: one might mention the extensive involvement of US companies in illegal logging in Sumatra, including the dreadful conduct of Citigroup. If any nation knows how to deal with and manipulate the judiciary and the military in Indonesia, it is undoubtedly America.

PS �on US reactions: a very good summary on the ever-reliable Slate site:
slate.msn.com...
One might add that there are numerous mentions of a warning being received in Taiwan (Bali is a playground for the wealthier Taiwanese) the day before � one can think of at least one nation that might be expected to have access to just about every aspect of Taiwanese intelligence.