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Australia urged 'to assassinate' leader of Jamaah Islamiyah

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posted on Dec, 18 2004 @ 11:00 PM
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The controversial question of state-sponsored assassinations has risen its head in Australia in recent days with an article by Duncan Campbell, a former Australian ambassador to Rome and Vienna.

Here's part of the article:



Hunt and kill terrorists, says ex-diplomat

Australia should be willing to track down and assassinate key individuals involved in regional terrorist networks, a former top-ranking diplomat has said.

Duncan Campbell, a former Australian ambassador to Rome and Vienna and once a deputy head of the Department of Foreign Affairs, says targeting and eliminating known terrorists is more efficient and costs fewer lives than waging conventional war.

A policy of state-sponsored assassinations might be more morally justified than taking part in poorly thought-through military actions in Iraq and Afghanistan, which inevitably inflict casualties on innocents, he argues. Mr Campbell told the Herald that someone like Abu Bakar Bashir, said to be the spiritual head of Jemaah Islamiah, could present a legitimate target for a state-sanctioned but "deniable" poisoning attempt.

"Can you imagine how easy it ought to be in a prison such as the one Bashir is in, to persuade someone for a lump of money to doctor his rice? That wouldn't involve Australian hands at all, except perhaps the passing by someone to someone of a little lump of chemicals of some sort. "

Mr Campbell spells out the reasoning for his controversial proposal in a collection of essays, A Fair Go in an Age of Terror, published this month by the Jesuit Social Justice Centre, UNIYA. The essays flow from a series of seminars the centre ran wrestling with Britain for blundering into the Iraq war without a clear game plan, Mr Campbell argues that a Western democracy like the US sets up far more exhaustive legal processes for executing a single criminal than it does for going to war.


smh.com.au...

Abu Bakar Bashir, a Jakarta based Muslim Cleric, is widely believed to have ordered various terorist attacks, including the Bombing in Bali which took 202 lives, including 88 Australian lives.

Israel has used targeted assassinations against Palestinian "terrorists" for decades. Should Australia begin to target potential "terrorist enemies" instead of direct intervention (invasion) in Indonesia, or other SE-Asian nations?



[edit on 18-12-2004 by Volksgeist]



posted on Dec, 18 2004 @ 11:19 PM
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Seems that Australia may be soon embracing or suggesting "pre-emptive strike," in the sense that to kill a known killer would be considered or deemed 'self-defense'?


seekerof



posted on Dec, 18 2004 @ 11:45 PM
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It's almost refreshing to hear someone speak honestly about something that has been going on forever, political piosonings were very popular even in Biblical times...

I doubt very much that Bashir would be the first person in Asia to meet with foul play at the hands of ASIS or the SAS. Military strategists all over world must be looking at all options to prevent extremist groups causing havoc. Australians has been militarily active in almost every country in Asia, mainly in training and advisory capacities, but undoubtably involved in covert actvity on occassion...



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 12:04 AM
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Assassination could become a popular way for "dealing" with Abu Bakar Bashir as it is far from certain that he will face any jail time for his alleged involvement in the terrorist bombings. Many key witnesses have failed to implicate him in bombings committed by Jemaah Islamiah.....




In Indonesia, the prosecution case against alleged terror leader Abu Bakar Bashir has suffered another setback. A series of witnesses, including a number of convicted terrorists, have denied that the Muslim cleric inspired or knew anything about bombings that killed more than 200 people.....

Prosecutors say Bashir is the leader of Jemaah Islamiyah, a militant group that hopes to establish an Islamic superstate across much of Southeast Asia. Intelligence experts say the group has ties to the al Qaida network, and that Osama bin Laden's command to attack Western targets also played a part in inspiring the Indonesian attacks.....

Bashir has never made a secret of his hatred of the West, and many of those already convicted of the Bali and Marriott bombings are graduates of the Islamic boarding school he founded and ran.

But analysts say, prosecutors are going to have a hard time proving a direct link between the cleric and the bombings. That difficulty was reflected when none of the six witnesses implicated Bashir directly in the attacks.

The trial is expected to last at least four more months.


www.voanews.com...

[edit on 19-12-2004 by Volksgeist]



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 12:09 AM
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What's so bad about assassination? It's certainly no worse then war. It's really only better. Cutting the head off can prevent things from getting a lot more bloody.



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 12:20 AM
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Originally posted by Disturbed Deliverer
What's so bad about assassination? It's certainly no worse then war. It's really only better. Cutting the head off can prevent things from getting a lot more bloody.


Ya - but it can also rally fanatics around a cause- ever hear the term martyr?

As useful and expediant as this may seem to be a short term solution to the problem - remember what is your tactic today will be your enemies tactic tomorrow - its a two way street and opening a pandoras box to espouse this doctrine.

Can you say "open season" on politicians.

This is not a good road to go down IMHO.



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 12:26 AM
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The weaker side is most likely unable to carry out the same action. You don't go killing off powerful leaders because there would be backlash. You do it to weaker opponents, or when you know you'll get away with it.


Ya - but it can also rally fanatics around a cause- ever hear the term martyr?


Anything could potentially have this affect. At the same time, there's more to it then inspiration. Taking out the right target simply takes the brains out of group. I'm not very scared of a mob, motivated or not.



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 12:40 AM
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I agree with those that see a greater danger in producing a martyr for the hundred thousands of indonesians looking for the true cause. The killing of bashir would be manipulated by his followers to cause massive unrest in an already unstable country. This unrest could move though south east asia where at this point in time Australia generally has good relations.



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 01:11 AM
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Who says that Bashir is well liked throughout Asia, he is probably only well liked in the Muslim dominated Indonesia and Malasia, and I doubt the government of either country like his presence there at all. If Australia were to mount a covert action against him in Indonesia it would have to be sanctioned by the Indonesian government...

We'd be doing them a favour...



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 02:06 AM
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Sanctioned? Let the Indonesians do it themselves. All this cloak and dagger stuff is unecessary. JI is as much a problem for (most) of the Indonesian government as it is for Australia.



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 05:32 AM
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I recall the days of strongman Surharto as benig corrupt and with no human rights.

I also recall that there was no damn JI or other crap roaches disgusing themselves as Muslim running around Jakarta killing innocent people and trying to destroy western interests. Jakarta today is like an unreal and ineffective fortress.

In those days, if one was considered a threat to national security, not only that person but his entire family would go "missing" six feet under. The deterrent effect of having a heavy handed dictator was taken for granted and unfortunately, the Indonesians and Western countries have to pay for it as they supported the overthrow of Surharto.



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 05:43 AM
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Originally posted by Phoenix
As useful and expediant as this may seem to be a short term solution to the problem - remember what is your tactic today will be your enemies tactic tomorrow - its a two way street and opening a pandoras box to espouse this doctrine.

Can you say "open season" on politicians.

While not arguing for or against assasination, I would point out that this is one tactic among many that terrrorists already employ.

The problem in this case is, the cat's already out of the bag. Was this intentional or not?





[edit on 19-12-2004 by jsobecky]



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 06:04 AM
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I tell you right now I will be part of any future hunt.



posted on Dec, 19 2004 @ 01:23 PM
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Hunt? Bashir is in prison awaiting trial for several charges.



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