The body of Noordin Top lies in a coffin for mourners to view before burial. – Reuters pic
The funeral of the man who set up a splinter group of regional militants Jemaah Islamiah and was seen as the mastermind behind bomb attacks on two luxury hotels in Jakarta in July as well the deadly 2002 Bali bombings, came two weeks after he was shot dead by Indonesian police.
The crowd, watched by a heavy police presence, was made up of curious onlookers and few expressed sympathy for the dead 41-year-old, whose wife Siti Rahma wept as he was lowered into the grave in the village of Ara Pasong.
“The only thing different about Noordin was that he was a terrorist,” said a villager who declined to be named due to what he said were fears of police harassment.
When Noordin’s wooden coffin was cut open for family members to have one final look at the body, shouts of “Allahu Akbar” (God is great) rang out several times and many onlookers raised their mobile phones to take pictures and videos.
Family members of Noordin Top offer prayers before his burial. – Reuters pic
“We are relieved the funeral went well and that he has finally been laid to rest,” his brother-in-law, Supriyo who has just one name, told reporters after the funeral.
“We do not support what he had done, but he was good to our family and a good Muslim. What we are very unhappy about is the fact that his body took so long to return.”
Noordin Top eluded authorities for years and was finally killed in a hail of gunfire on Sept 17 when Indonesian forces raided one of his safe houses in Solo, Central Java.
With his death, security analysts believe terrorism risks in Southeast Asia have declined.
“There really has been impressive progress in tracking down his network. But there remains the chance that militants try to strike back with small-scale attacks,” said Steve Vickers, president and chief executive of FTI-International Risk, a consultancy. – Reuters
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